To the Worlds Beyond!
by DaemonOmega
Summary: The story follows Riku Furude, an amnesiac deprived of all his memories. As his memories start coming back he learns that there's more to him, Haruhi and Serenity than it seems. Based on the fanfiction 'How Do I Go Back'
1. Prologue: Welcome to the World

Prologue: Welcome to the World

"Where am I…?"

Anyone's first instinct would be to look around unfamiliar territory. That would've been my first course of action too had there been anything to look at. Instead it was just a vast darkness, devoid of anything. I looked down and to my surprise I didn't seem to have a body. Then again it's so dark it might just be that it's too dark to see my body. Though I can't see it, I can certainly feel it. Come to think of it I can't move anyway. So many things kept coming to my mind but I was too confused and disoriented to think about them clearly. All of a sudden I could hear what sounded like footsteps approaching me.

"Hello?" I called out, "who's there?"

"Hmm? You're already awake huh…," the female voice responded, "I penned Him to be someone patient, not one to jump the gun."

"I'm sure you're quite confused right now" continued the girl, or at least she sounded relatively young. "Take it easy for now and get some rest. It's far too early for you to be awake. Give it some time and you'll feel…more complete shall we say?" she concluded.

Seeing as I had nothing else to do I 'shut' my eyes and let myself drift in the space. This darkness is far more disorienting than I thought. It's so dark I can't even tell whether I'm asleep or not. Regardless I did feel much more relaxed. Drifting in this space was far more calming than I'd imagine.

I didn't really know how to describe what happened after I started relaxing. It felt like a mental blackout. But it couldn't have been. There were what looked like pictures and some kind of video but they just moved and passed by too quickly to make sense of them. If the relaxing part is sleep then what would the fleeting visual have been? I feel really stupid right now. I'm someone capable of intellect but I can't even interpret what's going on around me. Did I lose more than just memories?

"It's ok, you can wake up now" the girl said. I didn't feel it at first but it slowly came to me. It started off as a feeling of depression on my face. It didn't take me long to realize she'd been poking me in the face, giggling like a child all the while. Opening my eyes for the first time hurt. The light was blinding and it didn't help that the room was white. After a while I adjusted to the brightness. Beside the bed that I was lying on was a huge window. I looked outside onto the landscape. It was beautiful. Meadows, forests, bodies of water and a sky dotted with a few clouds made up this world that I was on. But something seemed off. On a planet the curvature goes down, so why then is it that this world's curvature is going up instead? Upon further inspection it seemed to make a titanic bowl around the sun.

"It's what's referred to as a Dyson Sphere" she said. Guess the look on my face must've given away what I was thinking. Note to Self: Be more conscientious of my actions. Now that I knew what my surroundings were like I wanted to see what I looked like. Lacking memories beyond the time I spent in the darkness I had no idea what I could've possibly looked like. On the wall opposite my bed there was a dresser and a large mirror above it. I got off the bed and walked towards it. Sweet I'm pretty well built. Can't say anything more impressive than that though. If people judged based on first appearances then I'd have to say I look like a demon or a devil, something just evil in general. Long jet black hair, red irises and a rather serious look on my face probably sends the message across 'Hello nice to meet you. Can I disembowel you now?' Maybe I should try to be social and smile more often?

While further inspecting my surroundings I failed to notice the girl that has been accompanying me. She looks a lot like me. Guess she must be my sister or some other relative. Although there is one big difference between us. She looks much more approachable, a kind, gentle smile always gracing her face. Overall she gives off a much more comfortable feeling than I do. I wonder if she can give me some tips on how to be like that?

"You must be quite confused. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Luci. I've been tasked with caring for you as well as teaching you. Just think of me as your teacher but don't forget I'm here for you as well so I guess that makes me your friend as well" she laughed. "I'm pleased to welcome you to the world."


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Grand Tour

"First off we need to get you acquainted with your surroundings" she began.

"As far as you're concerned the placement and availability of furniture and features were of someone's design" she continued. Wouldn't anyone think that too? If she's taking the time to point this out this is all probably leading somewhere. Best to pay attention lest I miss something critical.

"This world is not just your home but, your canvas as well. Whatever you wish shall become reality and what you don't shall fade from existence" she concluded. I began to think of the implications of what she had just said to me. As I busily (and enjoyably) thought over various permutations Luci butted in "However there are limitations." Aww way to rain on my parade. Continuing from where she left off "There is what I like to call 'Set Pieces'. These are both external and internal factors that try all you may; you'll never be able to change or get rid of. For example, annoying as I might be to you, you're unable to purge me from existence." You, annoying? Maybe but you're the only other person here, I wouldn't dare get rid of you. I would quickly get lost and probably get myself killed if it wasn't for your little tutorials.

"Feel free to look around and try it out. After all there are some things best learned through experience." With that she left. Like a child with a new toy I began to experiment with the room. Sure enough there were things that changed and others that didn't. Having had enough fun with my room, I ventured out into the hallway. A few meters away I saw stairs leading upstairs and downstairs. As I walked towards it, much to my dismay, I didn't get any closer. I looked down to make sure I wasn't on a conveyor belt-like mechanism and only saw my feet taking steps towards my destination. Freaked out by this turn of events I tried to run back to my room and find a way to call for Luci. Lo and behold the weird anomaly was in effect in that direction too.

Hurray I must be setting a world record in how quickly I'm failing to get myself out of this situation. Doubled over laughing was Luci coming up the stairs. "I'm sorry if I distressed you too much. This is a continuation of my explanation about the Estate. Just as you have control over this world, so do I" giggling as she told me this. She left once more to let me explore…what did she call it? Estate?

Walking out onto the balcony where the stairs were I looked down onto the floor below. This place is definitely luxurious. How is it we're the only people living here? On the floor above was a single door. Being quirkier than the floor below, I decided to check out this solitary room. I opened the heavy oak double doors. Inside was a rustic library. The musty smell of ancient wood permeated throughout. Shelves upon shelves of reading material lined this space. The books here were of all kinds. On one shelf there was a datapad device beside a fragile ancient scroll. This library seemed to have a wide variety of subjects. Walking around more there were several computer terminals as well. Nothing but the stereotypical login screens, except for one none descript terminal off in the corner. It seems to be showing some kind of online forum:

Bluehair777: Anybody know what happened to Cruxis? He said he could help edit my fanfic as well as some of our project content. None of them have had any work done on them.

Lambdadelta34: That's right you've been gone for a while because of school. Cruxis has been inactive for a while. FallenAngel might know. From what I can tell the two of them are great friends irl.

FallenAngel: I'm not sure if Cruxis can come back. He seems to be ill with something that doctors are having a hard time diagnosing. Last I checked he was in a coma. Right now I'm praying that he recovers.

So there are other people out there. I wonder what world BlueHair777 and Lambdadelta34 are from. After looking around on the page I saw that this was FallenAngel's account. If this is Luci's account I wonder who this Cruxis is.

"You should know that it's rude to look at other people's account without their permission." Luci was standing behind me, arms crossed, with quite a serious look on her face. Whatever I did, it seriously pissed her off. I backed away from the terminal and she promptly closed the page and logged out. Trying to escape from her deathly glare I went up the last flight of stairs.

It opened up to a sunroom on the roof. Compared to the dim and enclosed library it was bright and spacious out here. Exiting the sunroom I was greeted by the gentle warmth radiated by the sun and the gentle caress of the breeze. Having a quiet place to think my thoughts drifted back to the online forum. The other users were proof that there were other people out there. Since Luci and I are the only people on this world there must be other worlds. There's also the question of how these worlds are set up. Through all this two more pressing questions came up. Who is Luci really and who's the one known as 'Cruxis'?

My reflection was broken by the grumbling of my stomach. Even though I could just wish for some food to be served to me, I decided to take this opportunity to more thoroughly explore the first floor. And so down the stairs I went.

Once again the luxurious living room and foyer greeted me. Checking to see if we had a guest or guests I opened the closet in the foyer. Nothing. Fearing that if I stare into this closet any longer I'll be taking a stroll though Narnia I closed it and went on my way. "Dinning room is over here" called out Luci. Following her voice I found my way to the dinning room.

Just like everything else in Estate it was very luxurious. Luci signalled me to sit across her. Now back to her gentle, joyful self she gave me a plate full of delectable food. However I nearly found myself gagging on the food I'd been served. Was she trying to get back at me for invading her privacy? "Delicious isn't it? I made it myself" proclaimed Luci. She's innocently taking pride in her effort so I guess I just misread the situation. "Umm you can have the rest. It's delicious but it isn't my type. I'll just go make something myself" I responded. Somewhat dejected she pointed me in the direction of the kitchen.

The kitchen was well equipped to create a variety of cuisine. Though I lack memories of recipes I found myself naturally at home here. After raiding the fridge (and yes it should come as no surprise that it restocked itself) and collecting the necessary equipment. More than a few times did I see Luci sticking her head into the kitchen, presumably because of the sounds and smells? Unsurprisingly, like a starving child, drool was dripping from the corner of her mouth. Don't worry Luci the feeling is mutual but, until the dish is prepared I cannot lose my composure. Now waiting for our meal (I decided to make one for Luci too) I returned to the dinning room.

"Since we'll be waiting for our meal I have two more things to show you. The room we're going to now is where you should go if trouble arises" she said as she got up and led the way. This room was hidden away in a rather plain corridor. Although unlike the plain corridor this room was protected by a massive vault door. After punching in a code, which she relayed onto me before we went in, we entered the dark room. At first I thought this was a panic room. When the lights turned on however, I saw that this place was better than that.

"…" I stood speechless at the sight before me. It was like a futuristic version of the rustic library on the third floor. Rather than being stocked with an array of reading material there were weapons as far as the eye can see, and beyond. If there are only two of us here why do we need a fully stocked armoury? I suppose she's going to train me to use these but, why in the first place? My awe was replaced with a feeling of caution. If we have something like this then there must be a threat. As if she's reading my thoughts once more she said "Now time to show you the last key location in Estate. This place is the core of this world. I'll simultaneously explain why we have an armoury while we're there too." With that we walked to wards the back of the armoury. There was an elevator before me. Stepping in we descended to the maw of Estate. Wait this place has a basement too?


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Worlds, Its Peoples and the Demons

After a minute or so of descent and typical elevator music the doors slid open. The partially illuminated room's only sources of light were the numerous large screens and computer terminals. In the center was a large cylindrical shaped device. Luci motioned me to come to the device. Passing her hand over the device's surface it came online.

"Estate is an interdimensional hub. Right now it isn't anchored to any worlds and is 'floating' about in the dimensional space between worlds. Unanchored, its surroundings take on the form of the Dyson Sphere. Anchored, it takes on the surroundings of the world." A hologram of Estate was projected above the device. Minority Report-style Luci used the motions of her hands to give me a better perspective of estate. It looked like an oversized version of the Forerunner Ark, a large flowerlike construct drifting soundlessly through interdimensional space. I remember a witch having a home like this but her name eludes me.

"As you saw on the terminal I was using in the library there are other people on other worlds. All of these worlds fall under two categories: Fictional or Real. The 'Real World' is populated by normal beings. They have no special powers. However they can greatly affect the 'Fictional World'. If enough people collectively acknowledge a piece of fiction it's created in the 'Fictional World'" she said before taking a pause. That means that everything in the Fictional World is a result of the dreams and works of a collective group of people from the Real World. Which side are we on or are we somewhere in between?

"To answer your quandary we are in the Fictional World. There is a barrier that prevents beings from openly jumping back and forth between the two sides." Does that mean Luci and I are someone's creation? If so, why? Talk about questioning your own existence. "To be honest I'm not sure what you are. Just call it gut feeling but you're not the result of someone's work, at least not entirely" Luci assured me. She still hasn't told me what she is. Thinking on it she's quite an enigma. I was not given enough time to think things over as Luci quickly switched the topic back onto the two worlds.

"The Fictional World is like a spider's web. Rarely are the worlds running parallel to each other due to their differences. Nevertheless despite their differences they intersect on occasion with other worlds. There are as many types of people as there are worlds. To simplify the variety I've kindly prepared this list to rank beings in the Fictional World." A holographic list appeared before us presenting the following list:

Rank 0 – Beings with no special powers at all

Rank 1 – Again beings with no special powers at all. However they have devices or relics that grant them powers

Rank 2 – Beings who wield some kind of power or powers without the aid of devices or relics. However they are unable to travel to other worlds or through time without assistance

Rank 3 – Beings who wield some kind of power or powers. Unlike Rank 2's they have the power to travel to other worlds but not time without assistance. These beings are generally referred to as Sliders

Rank 4 – Beings who wield immense powers. They have the ability to travel through time and worlds. Despite their great power they are incapable of Creation, only manipulation.

Rank 5 – Beings of unparalleled power. They possess the ability to travel through time and worlds. They are the only beings capable of Creation or the ability to create something from nothing

I wonder which rank I am. Then again it doesn't really matter since in my current state I may as well be Rank 0. Better yet I wonder what rank Luci is. Knowing her I wouldn't be surprised if she were Rank 4. To think this is just a simplified list. That must mean there are beings out there that are just a mishmash of these ranks.

"Demons are the enemy of any being. Created from the negative emotions of all beings, both from Fictional and Real Worlds, they run rampant throughout the worlds. They can travel between worlds freely. It's for this reason why we have an armoury and a panic room. Though it's more difficult for them to get into something just drifting through interdimensional space they still do." Luci seemed to be done explaining things for now. Leaving the panic room we headed to the elevator and went back topside.

The delectable scent of the meal I had prepared greeted us as we exited the armoury. Heading back to the dinning room I was surprised to see that the meal was set out on the table. Luci's handiwork no doubt. Suffice it to say we chowed down on the delicious meal I made. Stuffed, I decided to read in the library.

Some time later Luci came in. "I want you to try something for me. A few kilometres from here there's a lake. Go run around it, come back and tell me how you feel" she ordered. Well that's a weird request. Since I did have a lot to eat for lunch maybe I should work it off.

Remembering that I had spotted this lake from the roof I started jogging in its direction. Once again the gentle warmth of the sun and the breeze greeted me. A lot has happened today. For starters I don't remember anything beyond the time I spent in the darkness. Secondly what is Luci hiding? She obviously wasn't pleased when I looked around on her account. Finally, worlds and other beings aside, how much of a threat are these Demons? If it warrants Luci having a fully stocked armoury they're definitely dangerous enough. Arriving at the shore of the lake I began to realize the magnitude of the task Luci gave me. While not as large as Canada's Great Lakes it was still fairly large. Never mind the time it'll take me to finish because if I runs this I'll probably be dead before I'm done. Luci is big on teasing me but I'm pretty sure this is another of her 'things are best experienced' lessons. Keeping that in mind I began the arduous task before me.

SEVERAL hours later I finally finished. I see why she wanted me to run it. It's what she wanted me to experience or rather the lack thereof. Despite running several kilometres I barely feel exhausted, physically that is. Running around gave me plenty of time to think things over. If anything thinking is more exhausting than running around nonstop for hours on end. Once again feeling hungry I headed back to Estate and hoped that Luci didn't get any delusions of grandeur by cooking dinner.

When I reached the dinning room my worst fears were realized. Before me was more of Luci's cuisine. Deciding that damaging my taste buds was better than starving (perhaps not the best judgement call I admit) I ate the food she prepared. It didn't taste horrible but it certainly wasn't on par with what I made earlier. "It's canned foods by the way. If I can't cook something from scratch then I'll simply bypass that part of cooking" she cleverly replied. She continued "get some rest, it's pretty late already. I've got some new things I want to teach you tomorrow." With that I excused myself, went to my room and went to sleep. Will I see those images and video again?

Luci punched in the code to open the armoury door. Walking past the shelved weaponry, she made her way to the elevator in the back and down to the panic room. Upon entering all the screens came to life, lighting the room. She made her way to the monitor on the other side of the room. "Secure channel; Cruxis" she commanded.

"Ah Luci. I was beginning to think I wouldn't hear from you again" Cruxis responded.

"Sorry I've been getting used to Estate as much as he was" replied Luci.

"Speaking of which how's he doing? I really didn't expect him to exist at all" said Cruxis.

"He's doing well so far. He's beginning to get a grasp of the outside world as well as some of his skills. Tomorrow I'd like to get his combat training started. The faster we can explore the outside world, the faster we can get an idea of what he's really capable of" she said in response.

"Very well then. Don't push him too quickly. The fact that he exists even though I was the only one who knew about him is more than enough proof that he's an anomaly. I'd rather not lose him before I figure out how we did that. I have an odd feeling about him. It's too early to make any assumptions so I ask you to keep a close eye on him" Cruxis concluded.

"Of course old friend, stay safe. After all progress reports are useless if the one you're reporting to no longer exists" Luci chuckled.

"Terminate transmission"


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: All Consuming Inferno, Hellfire

To think it's been almost a month since I first awoke in this world. I've spent much of my time being trained in combat by Luci. I've been making sure that I master everything that she teaches me. If there's one thing I learned it's that every technique, every style, has its own strengths and weaknesses. Thus to minimize weak points it's best to learn as many of them in order to compensate for weak points.

She's also begun teaching me how to use weapons. Like the stereotypical hero I find myself favouring the sword. Like with my fighting style I chose a weapon that is versatile and can be used in a variety of situations. Despite favouring versatility I find that my style of fighting tended to favour speed and power. Having no other name for it I called my style Blitzkrieg.

This life has quickly become routine to me. My day starts off with preparing a healthy (and delicious) meal for myself and Luci. Then we spend the morning doing rigorous physical exercise. We then break for lunch. Following that is combat training all afternoon. Once we finished with all this Luci and I eat dinner together. The rest of the time after that and before I go to sleep, I spend my time in the library expanding my knowledge base. Not a normal life by any means but to me it certainly has become so.

Another typical morning. I found myself running a lap around the lake I ran on my first day. After the first few times I came here I began to notice that it's actually slightly cooler here. Concerning that, I learned in the library that was the result of lake effect where the wind blowing over the lake is cooled by the lake temperature. It's good to see that I'm effectively teaching myself.

"Cruxis, are you there?" Luci called out.

"Yes, sorry about that. I found some Demons wandering too close to my hideout so I had to go deal with them. I guess you're giving me a status report?" asked Cruxis.

"It's still early, so it isn't about the status report. Ever since we began combat training I've been sensing his powers awakening. It's a bit strange though. I get the exact same feeling from him that I got from you. I was wondering if there's anything on your end that you've learned that could explain this" inquired Luci.

"This may seem irrelevant but did you have grilled salmon for dinner last night?" Cruxis asked.

"How did you know? I never told you that. Are you developing some new powers there Cruxis?" laughed Luci.

"Ever since you began training him I've been getting glimpses of things he's experienced while I'm dreaming. I wouldn't be surprised if this effect works both ways" replied Cruxis.

"Hmm what's this?" Luci asked. A message with an attachment on it popped up. She opened the attachment. It was a picture of a burning forest landscape.

"Ask what he dreamt about last night. If my theory is correct he should describe something like this. This was taken the day before so it might still be fresh in his mind" requested Cruxis.

The alarm blared inside the panic room. Luci moved over to another terminal. It was displaying a layout of Estate. On the screen a red blip was approaching her student. "Crap it's heading towards…" Luci started but trailed off. All the time they spent together and she didn't even give him a name. She facepalmed herself for her incompetence. She was soon brought back when Cruxis called out to her.

"Luci what's wrong? What's happening?" asked the alarmed Cruxis.

"There's a Demon heading toward…" Once again she trailed off.

"I wouldn't worry about him. After all aren't you the one who said 'some things are best learned through experience'? Remember to give him a name" reassured Cruxis.

Luci dashed to the elevator and headed topside. "With this simple event Luci, his journey has begun."

My peaceful run was interrupted by a piercing roar. Looking behind me I saw that a strange black creature was running towards me. I would be amazed by the fact that this is the first animal I've seen here if it wasn't charging at me with a sword. Closing the distance between us, I knew that I wouldn't be able to run from it now. I jumped back to avoid the swinging sword. Missing, the creature let out another piercing roar. Within arm's reach it's absolutely deafening. While it was recovering I gave it a kick square in the face. It staggered back and simply let out another roar. Well I'll take that as an ineffective hit. My only option now is to make it back to the armoury and get a weapon. Deciding that this option would be my best bet I began to run back towards the mansion.

Running as fast as I could barely kept me ahead of it. At this rate I might actually run into Luci before I make it back. Hopefully she's better skilled and equipped to deal with this thing. Going against my instinct I looked back to see how far away it was. I watched in terror as it sheathed its sword and went on all fours, running even faster. Great…you're a quadruped. I felt a sharp blow hit me in the back. Damn thing must've tackled me. As I got back on my feet a sharp pain streaking across my chest. As I lay on the ground I held my hand to my chest. I held my hand before me and saw that it was dripping with blood. It didn't take me long to go into shock from the immense blood loss. Once I pass out I'm definitely screwed. Damn it I have to get up.

I managed to get back on my feet. With my vision starting to black out I saw the creature getting ready to finish me off. It started to run towards me but then stopped. Well that's weird. I held my hand to my chest once more to see how much blood I was losing. At first I thought that it was the result of my vision blacking out. As my vision cleared though, it quickly became evident that it wasn't because of that. There were black flames emanating from my wound. Whatever it was it healed it. Realizing that I was recovering from my injury it once again charged at me. Slashing at me, I stepped to the side dodging it. To get back at it for injuring me I gave it a powerful kick. Rather than staggering back, this time I actually sent it airborne. Accompanying the kick was more of the black fire, this time leaving a spreading burn on the creature. Alright things are turning in my favour.

It didn't take me long to get acquainted with my new power. I realized that I could get it to add more damage to simple kicks and punches. Added on top of its damage boosting effect, the burn wound it leaves behind progressively spreads. As it slashed I ran towards it and ducked to evade the oncoming strike. Seeing an opening I punched it in the abdomen. As it recoiled back from the punch it dropped its sword. I picked it up and thrust it through the creature. It let out a pained roar. I can't believe it's still alive. As I thought up of a way to kill it off all of a sudden, like a hawk diving on a target, Luci dropped out of the sky driving a sinister looking spear through it. The creature began to slowly dissipate away. As it did I saw its last memory. It was me standing before it, my hands engulfed in the black fire.

Luci ran up to me and hugged me. "Thank goodness you're alright Riku!" she exclaimed. Riku…is that my real name or one that she's giving me. "We've been living together for almost a month and I couldn't believe I haven't once called you out by name" she said, nervously laughing all the while. "Riku Furude. From now on that's your name" she finished. With the threat eliminated I guess there was nothing left to do but head back for lunch. Fighting sure works up an appetite.

After eating lunch Luci asked about what had transpired during my fight with the creature. After recounting my experience it seemed as if I gave Luci much to think about. She started off discussing what the creature I encountered was. Her explanation made me realize that I had a harrowing encounter with a Demon and to make matters worse it was just a lowly grunt. If I'm to survive in the outside world I'd do well to hone my combat skills. The next topic she started is the one I'm really interested in.

"Black flames you say? Then you possess one of the most destructive powers in existence. It's known as the All Consuming Inferno. All Consuming Inferno are flames straight from the deepest depths of Hell. As its name implies it will literally consume everything it comes into contact with. The truly hellish component of it, mind the pun Riku, is that only the user can extinguish the flames. However user control is All Consuming Inferno's greatest component. For example you can flood an entire battlefield with it but with some control on your part it won't injure or even impair your allies." A bit lengthy for my taste but at least it answers most of my basic questions. I should probably give All Consuming Inferno a shorter, and catchier, code name. Hmm Hellfire should suffice. After pitching my idea to her, she gladly accepted it. Telling me how she had to say 'All Consuming Inferno' every time she wanted to use it made me realize why she so readily accepted my idea. New power in hand I shouldn't be surprised to find Luci incorporating it into my combat training. It's a good thing that Luci and I share the same power.

Since it was now afternoon I got up and got ready for combat practice. Oddly enough Luci broke from this routine. "Combat practice can wait for today. I have a question for you and please take it seriously. What did you dream about last night?" asked Luci. Wow we really went off on a tangent from our regular routine. Well at least I can actually interpret my dreams now unlike before where they were just a blur. "I dreamt that I was fighting these weird creatures much like the Demon I fought today. Only the last little bit was really clear. Too bad it was only a panoramic view but if you're interested it was just a burning forest" I replied. She looked as though a theory of hers just got more evidence. With her impeccable ability of keeping things secret there really isn't much of a point in squeezing it out of her, so for now I'll leave it be. After that things went on as usual and another day came to a close.

Luci went on her regular midnight excursion to the panic room. The familiar sight of the screens and monitors turning on was as routine as Riku's daily schedule. "Secure channel; Cruxis" she ordered as she had numerous times before. Cruxis appeared on screen with that command.

"Told you he would be alright" Cruxis said.

"Well after that episode I have some noteworthy things to give you a report on" replied Luci.

"For one his power has finally awakened. It's the All Consuming Inferno, Hellfire. Despite using it only for a short duration he seems to have a fairly good grasp on how to use it. From here on in I shall make it a point to make it the focal point of his training as right now it's his strong point."

"Secondly I did as you asked and questioned him about his dream last night. As you predicted he described the same thing as on the image. I assume you know where this is leading?" Luci concluded

"Why? Ever since he came into being I've been feeling my Power of Existence dropping, though only by an infinitesimally small amount. I believe that I bypassed collective belief by using half of my own soul as the base for his. By contracting your soul to his as a Guardian Angel, he gained your appearance and your power. Nevertheless he is his own unique individual; as such I wouldn't be too overly surprised if he develops more powers on his own. As for my own wellbeing the drop shouldn't pose much of a threat in the short term. You should know though the consequences of having it completely extinguished" he responded.

"Yes, once exhausted one is purged from existence. However the barrier between the two worlds will prevent him from ever reaching you so unfortunately your fate is sealed" Luci grimly replied in return.

"He's an extremely clever individual and he'll only get stronger from here on in. Believe me when I say if he chooses to, he WILL rescue me. Either way I'll cease to exist. But as the saying goes 'Every ending is a new beginning'. Thus I face both scenarios without fear. Please do me one favour though Luci regardless of how this situation turns out: Let him do as he wishes. Once he finds out about this, and believe me he quickly will given the opportunity, he will make one of the choices I've already stated" he concluded.

"As an old friend I shall do as you asked. As one acquainted with what happens when humans, or any being for that matter, disobeys God I would choose to terminate him now before he or anyone he works with in the future causes untold chaos. I hope you know what you and him are getting into" she finished

"Terminate transmission"


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Start of a Journey

Yet another month has passed. I've been spending my time learning to utilize Hellfire. After all that training I've created a few nifty powers using the energy that emanates from it. The first one was the one I had unconsciously created when I was first attacked by the Demon, Regeneration. It was a passive skill that would quickly heal any injuries or anything else that can cause me harm, like viruses. However its only drawback was that how can I say this…a HoT or heal over time, meaning that it doesn't instantly heal the injury. The second one was meant not to just supplement me in combat but also had practical applications, Synthesis. It allows me to convert Hellfire's energy into matter and create almost anything I want. Just like Regeneration it had a drawback; I couldn't synthesize anything that I had no knowledge of. Oh well at least they come out perfectly. The final one was something I've been having a blast with, Blaze Slide. With this new (and by new I mean I just made it a couple days ago) I gained flight and levitation abilities. Since it was so new I couldn't match Luci's variation of it. Luci's version didn't just let her fly but it made her move at ridiculous speeds, fast enough to create a deafening sonic boom. Mine only lets me move at twice my speed…

Complaints aside I do feel happy about one thing: It was almost time to leave Estate. These feelings were mixed with unease though. Never mind Demons, there were other beings out there that pose a threat to me. Have my combat skills improved enough to allow me to survive? In addition to that I broke the sword Luci gave me. Another Demon attacked me and broke it…I liked that sword too…In light of this Luci said she would bring me to a world where I can make a new weapon, one just for me. I don't really see the point though since I could just synthesize another one. She does seem excited about where we're going to go so I'll let that lapse in judgement slide.

Suffice it to say I'll miss the Dyson Sphere setting of this world. It's been so peaceful here, maybe too peaceful. With countless worlds out there I'll be able to see new settings. Maybe I can even alter the Dyson Sphere's environment to a new one that I like. Well it's almost time to go now so I probably should find Luci.

"So you two are finally leaving Estate?" Cruxis asked.

"Yep! The first world we're going to will be lots of fun!" she enthusiastically replied.

"Umm why do I get the feeling that you have some motive behind this destination?" he suspiciously asked in return.

"Hey I might be ancient in terms of age but, physically and mentally I'm still a young lady. I have needs too you know?" she said teasingly.

"…just please do go overboard. And remember to get Riku a new weapon" he sighed in resignation, knowing that nothing he says will change her mind. "Well it's almost time for you and Riku to go so I shall be taking my leave as well. Goodbye and I hope you enjoy your trip!"

"Terminate transmission."

"Sometimes that guy just needs to enjoy himself. Go enjoy a cold beer or a bottle of vintage wine."

I went into the foyer of Estate and was greeted by the still overly enthusiastic Luci. Enh, what's up with her attire? She looks like she's going to a party or something. Level of suspicion has gone up to Code Red. Resigning to the fact she's probably gonna ditch me once we reach our destination I let out a sigh and said "Let's go. You're obviously excited to do something there. Just remember not to accidently leave me behind."

"Oh relax creating portals to other worlds is easy!" she replied. Hmm maybe I should make my own plans while I'm there too. A black doorway appeared before us. Opening the door the two of us entered and began our journey.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: How to Make Magical Devices for Dummies

As I thought she ditched me. She did leave note at least so I'm thankful for that. It read:

_Went to the shopping district to get some new clothes. Here's a map and a pass to get into TSAB's Infinite Library. Look up any material on 'Magical Devices'. I hope you have something impressive to show me when I get back_

_3 Luci_

I can't believe she ditched me to go clothes shopping! Meh guess I can't blame her; after all she only ever wears that one outfit. Still though I could've just synthesized some clothes she liked. Feeling dejected that one of my best new found powers wasn't finding much use I decided to head to the library. Midchilda was definitely from the future but not that far, maybe around 500 years ahead? We still had vehicles on wheels so I guess hovercrafts never really caught on or were just too expensive to mass produce. Thinking of money I just realized that I had none. Sure I could synthesize things like food and other necessities but there's no way in hell I can make something like a house. On another note I wonder what TSAB stands for?

Following the detailed (thank you Luci!) map Luci left me I found my way to TSAB's headquarters. I went into the building. I asked the receptionist what TSAB stood for. She gave me a funny look then told me it stood for _Time and Space Administration Bureau_. There was a woman, probably a couple years older than me, just ahead. I overheard she had the day off so maybe she can tell me where the library was. I asked her where the library was located. She kindly showed me the way. It didn't take us long to find it. With all the shortcuts we took thanks to her unrestricted access I can only assume that I've enlisted the help of someone with some power around here.

The library was definitely different from the one back home. It looked like a giant void lined with bookshelves resting on a non-existent floor. Thinking that I would fall down I made use of Blaze Slide. I heard light laughing behind me as I did so. "You won't fall down you know" said the kind woman. She motioned me to follow her over to another person.

"Yuno, it's been a while" greeted the woman.

"Fate, it has been a while hasn't it?" replied Yuno.

"If it isn't too much to ask could you help out this young man?" asked Fate.

"Of course, that won't be a problem. Say hello to Nanoha for me" Yuno said as he waved goodbye to Fate. I too said goodbye to her as well as thanking her for her help. Crap I didn't even introduce myself…I must seem like such an absentminded fool to Fate. Avoiding making the same mistake again I introduced myself and he introduced himself as well. Yuno asked me what I wanted to look up.

"Magical Devices? That is a fairly broad range of material. Might I ask what you will use it for?" he asked.

"I want to make a weapon. I broke the one my friend gave to me as a gift fighting a Demon. She told me to look up how to make one of these 'Magical Devices'. I suppose if there are any other features I can add to it I may as well" I said in return.

"Well your friend is right; one use for Magical Devices is a weapon. Since you are going to make something for combat use you may as well add a Barrier Jacket and making an AI for it might not be a bad idea either. Here let me get some material that contains the best information regarding these topics" he said.

A green glowing magic circle appeared under him. What looked like ribbons of his magic poured into the depths of the library. After a few moments volumes of material went flying in my direction. I asked him what spell he just cast. He replied it was a simple search spell. It could locate anything that you have previous knowledge of. Guess he's the librarian for a reason. I thanked him for his assistance and he left. He told me that I should go to him if I need more material to look over. I moved myself closer to where he was working so that I wouldn't have to go far to ask for his help. Now that I had material to look over I began the task of learning how to make these Magical Devices.

These Magical Devices are amazing. They're an eclectic blend of advanced technology and magical energy. Asking Yuno for some more advanced material pertaining to this topic I began reading further into it. Some time later Yuno came over to where I was.

"I have to say, your reading speed is amazing! Even with my spell I can only match your reading speed" he said in awe.

I told him that lacking precise memories I had to teach myself. Having only the energetic Luci I made it a part of my routine to read in our library everyday. So for me it's no surprise that my reading speed could be considered 'amazingly fast'. He taught me another spell. This one helped to accelerate my reading speed beyond human limitations. After a few hours I finally read every bit of material available in the library. I now knew anything I needed to know on how to construct a Magical Device. However I had another problem facing me: Where the hell am I supposed to spend the night? Luci left me nothing in the way of a domicile or how to get back to Estate. So much to my embarrassment I went to Yuno to ask him how I could solve this.

There was someone else here now. She had long orange-brown hair tied off into a ponytail and looked to be about the same age as Fate and Yuno. A girl, a few years younger than me, accompanied her. She looked a lot like Fate but she had heterochromatic eyes; one red, the other green. It didn't take them long to notice me.

"Oh hello there. You must be the one Fate ran into today. I'm Nanoha Takamachi and this is my step daughter Vivio Takamachi" she said. Her daughter waved happily at me. Getting back to the task at hand I asked Yuno where I could get lodgings. Nanoha kindly offered to take me in for the night. Realizing that what she said unnerved me Vivio said "Mama isn't afraid of anyone! If you mess with us we'll beat you up!" Despite being a young child I took her warning seriously. After all need I go further than Luci for an example of 'Looks can be deceiving'?

Putting that comment aside I thanked her for her generosity. On the way to the Takamachi residence Nanoha asked me where I was from. I retold the same story I gave Yuno. I could see concern in her eyes. I reassured her that my friend had been taking good care of me. A little while later we arrived. Her home was upper-middle class but nothing like Estate. Then again I should be just privileged to call Estate my home. After taking a shower I found that Nanoha and Vivio prepared dinner plus one. After eating their delicious dinner I offered to clean up. Once I finished up Nanoha pointed me in the direction of the guest room. I got accustomed to this room. Depending on how long I stay in this world I might be staying with the Takamachi's for a while. For now, as one unfamiliar with the meaning of exhaustion thank to Luci's training, I began synthesizing my Magical Device. Come to think of it what am I gonna name it?


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Angel Player

The long sleepless night passed. Suffice it to say I take back what I said about me being unfamiliar with the meaning of exhaustion. Due to my stupidity I was now sleeping in. On the plus side I did finish it although I'm sure it's not as good as it could be. Oh well I'll try to find somebody to help me put it through its paces. For now sleep is my main priority. I began to dream. I, or whoever's perspective this is, was watching an anime. There were these shadow like beings attacking the protagonists. One of them really stood out though. She was a silver haired yellow eyed young girl. She had all these abilities created by a program called Angel Player. Wait…versatility…creating new abilities on the fly? I think I have a name for my Magical Device. Sorry Key but I'll be borrowing that name from now on.

I woke up around mid afternoon. I made myself a meal (yes, no Synthesis this time) when Vivio came home from school. Knowing that she'd be hungry I went out of my way to make her a meal as well. "Thank you Riku onii-chan!" she said. Older brother? I wonder if I had any siblings. I told her "No problem" and we sat down together, chatting while we ate. I wonder if this is how other people spent their time. Afterwards Vivio asked if I would come with her to the community center. I had already finished constructing my Magical Device so I saw no problems with that. Anyway I want to see what life is like here in Midchilda.

A short walk later we arrived at the community center. There were a group of girls waiting for Vivio. They must be her friends. Going off with her friends I decided to take a look around. It seems like any other community center. Mind you there were some things that could only be found in an advanced society. Walking further there was a gym ahead of me. Seeing that I could take a shortcut by cutting through the gym I went through. Reaching the middle I heard a familiar voice yelling "Heads up!" The last thing I saw before taking a roundhouse to the head was Vivio with an 'oh no' look on her face. Getting up from worse injuries I quickly got back on my feet. Best of all I got to use Regeneration to heal the bruise on the side of my face.

"Are you nuts Riku? Can't you see people are doing Strike Arts spars in here?" scolded Luci. Judging from her outfit she was one of the people sparring, against Vivio too considering she was the next closest person.

"Need I remind you that you ditched me to buy clothes! Worse than that I had to inconvenience Vivio and her mother in order to get a place to stay the night!" I said back.

"Don't worry about it Riku onii-chan, you're not a bother at all!" reassured Vivio. Thank you Vivio-chan, your belief in me is moving!

Luci suggested that I invite Vivio and her mother to our house. Wait, she anchored Estate to Midchildia? Is that where she stayed last night? Once again, like she's reading my mind "No I didn't go home last night. I stayed in a hotel because I ended up being too far away." So she did have money. Wonder where she got it or better yet how much did she have. Seeing an opportunity to repay the Takamachi's for their hospitality I extended the invitation to Vivio and later Nanoha and Fate as well. Luci leading the way we quickly found where she anchored Estate. Taking the initiative I invited everyone in.

This time around it was I who was preparing dinner. For obvious reasons I did not enlist the help of Luci as the taste of her meal was still burned into my memory, and taste buds. Getting confirmation beyond Luci's opinion I was glad to receive rave reviews from my visitors on the meal I made. "So Riku did you finish your Magical Device?" asked Luci. I pulled out a crucifix necklace. It was a red crystalline material bordering a smaller black opaque cross. "It's done, like you asked. It's called Angel Player" I replied. I told them that I haven't had the chance to test it out yet. Fate said she could spar with me tomorrow since she could get out of work early. I thanked Fate once more for her assistance. After a lengthy and entertaining chat with them they left. I asked Luci if it would be alright to stay at least one more day. I once again cleaned up after everyone. I was still tired from staying up all night the other day. Realizing that I'll need all my strength for my sparring match with Fate I went to bed. Still though I wonder through whose perspective I see my dream. Whoever it is he's giving me lots of combat experience. If I find out who you are I'll give you a cookie!

"So how's Midchildia this time of year?" Cruxis asked sarcastically.

"Oh very funny…" replied Luci. "Just so you know Riku has finally finished constructing his new weapon. However if you want to know its combat capabilities you'll have to wait till tomorrow. He called his Magical Device Angel Player."

"Really? Well I had a rather uneventful day yesterday. So I thought, being the otaku that I am, I'd watch Angel Beats. Guess he must have saw clips of Kanade Tachibana and the Angel Player program. Well I look forward to that report then. Alright then guess I'll end early tonight. Cute outfit by the way" complimented Cruxis. Luci just gave him a beaming smile, an indirect way of saying thanks.

"Terminate transmission."


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Lightning Enforcer

Finally after a good night's sleep I don't feel sluggish anymore. As usual I ate the breakfast I prepared. Apparently according to Luci I have the day to myself which roughly translates to day off. I haven't had much of a chance to do much work on Angel Player. Maybe I should try making something that allows me to work more precisely on it. Using the knowledge I gained about Midchildan technology I created a computer that could do just that and as a little extra I made it portable.

Utilizing my latest creation I soon realized that had I cut corners in programming my weapon, armour and abilities. As of right now I only have 3 basic, working programs: Hand Sonic, Barrier Jacket and Distortion. I guess I must have been pretty tired by the time I got to the point where I was programming combat components. Good thing I chose to wait till today to have my sparring match against Fate. If I had decided to do it yesterday she surely would've mopped the floor with me. Now given the opportunity to add and revise, I began.

First off I should probably revise my weapon. Hand Sonic, as I saw it in my dreams, materialized a metal blade. However she used metal due to the limitations imposed by the plot of the anime. Not restricted by the same limitations I opted for a far deadlier material, or rather should I say energy source. Since Hellfire generates a massive and continuous amount of excess mana I could use that to make my weapon. It'll be able to cut and pierce through armour much easier than metal. Next I should alter the blade shape. Since only the blade section past her hand is capable of slashing by increasing the blade width even the section along the forearm can cause damage. Applying these modifications I moved on to my defences.

Distortion seems to do its job. It provides radial anti-projectile defence against weak to medium powered projectiles by deflecting the projectile away. At least I don't have to worry about these kinds of things slowing me down while I'm charging towards a target. Distortion does have limitations it seems. For one it can't block explosive force and secondly it won't be able to stop someone from walking right through it. Rather than spreading out the barrier I made an additional program that condenses it into a directional shield called Phalanx. This shield should be able to cover Distortion's weaknesses if only for a short time.

The last thing I had to look over was my Barrier Jacket. Out of all the program defaults this one needed the least amount of practical revisions. According to the specs it should perform just fine in simulated combat. Anyhow I can add practical improvements later after sparring with Fate. For now though I just want to improve its aesthetics. First off I want to replace the default cloak. Come to think of it most Barrier Jackets seem to be cloaks, I wonder why. Rather than a cloak I replaced it with an orichalcon cuirass, gauntlets and boots. There now it looks good and it'll provide much better protection. There was one final aesthetic program that I don't exactly know why I included. It would seem that there's an aesthetic program called Angel Wings. From what the specs say about it, it isn't even capable of flight. In fact the only thing it does is make me look good. Well it seems like too much trouble to purge it from Angel Player since its part of the Barrier Jacket program. Perhaps I should edit it to be compatible with Blaze Slide. Not sure what that'll do but it's certainly easier than removing it. Finally basic revisions are finished and all that's left is to test it out.

The revisions didn't take as long as I though it would. Looking at the clock I still have plenty of time left till my appointment with Fate. I should probably go back to the library at TSAB headquarters and do some research on spells to add to my repertoire of skills. It might also be a good idea to look over Magical Devices again since I never did get around to looking into Belkan technology. Once again I headed to the library using the map Luci left me on the first day. Speaking of which where is she? She left early this morning and didn't say a word about where she was going. Meh she's probably out shopping again for more stuff. I once again found my way to TSAB headquarters without much trouble. Showing my pass a guide showed me the way.

Entering the void-like library I met Yuno again. As I did yesterday I requested the material that I wanted. Yuno's search spell yielded yet another large load of material to look over. Thanks to the scanning spell Yuno taught me I was getting through all of it easily. So far there haven't been many spells that could be of use to me. The most helpful was a ranged spell whose movements could be controlled. Only problem is that it gets pretty difficult to manage multiple shots. My solution? Using the search spell Yuno taught me I converted it to a spell that acts like an IFF. I then altered the ranged spell to home in on the IFF spell rather than requiring mental input for control. Next up on the spell modification I changed the projectile type. Since it's a homing projectile the target can lose it by running it into an obstacle. By making it into an explosive it'll make it that much more difficult to evade it, even if a target does run it into an obstacle. And as an added touch I set it to detonate if it reaches a certain distance away from the IFF magic circle.

Next up on my research list is Belkan technology. From what I've gleamed so far it's certainly interesting. Unfortunately there isn't much in the way of combat applications that I haven't already come across. The Unison Device technology looks promising but as of right now it doesn't seem like I have much use for it. On the other hand the Cartridge System definitely looks like it could be very useful, especially combined with my Synthesis skill. It utilizes a vessel, usually like a shotgun round in appearance, filled with the concentrated mana of the user to give a temporary boost to their weapon. The system does have a very serious side effect if the amount of cartridges used exceeds the user's limits. Apparently it can cause physical damage to the user's body if the mana amount exceeds the body's limits. I guess I'll keep that in mind if I decide to use this, after all an advantage is useless if I severely injure myself. I would've lost track of time if Fate hadn't dropped by. Why is it I always make a fool of myself around her? Hopefully I don't do anything to screw up during our sparring match.

Thankfully she overlooked or just didn't notice that I had forgotten about our sparring match. Since we were both heading to Estate she offered me a ride there. Considering I walked from Estate to here it wouldn't have been a problem for me to have walked back. Although this is the fastest way back, that and I don't want to make anymore idiotic mistakes around her. Deducing that this was the most effective way back I took her up on her offer. To my surprise Nanoha and Vivio were with Fate.

"Nanoha, Vivio, what are you doing here?" I asked.

"I asked mama and Fate-san if we could watch" replied the smiling Vivio.

"Thanks Vivio. I'll do my best to win" I replied back. Her smile turned to a rather mischievous grin. Crap…is Fate really that good?

On the way to Estate I tried to gauge approximately how strong Fate was. All I gauged was how much planning without data it takes to give me a headache. I'm sure if Luci was here she'd probably say her trademark 'some things are best experienced' line. At this point I'll probably figure out how powerful she is through experience. We arrived at Estate with Luci waving at us from the front door. She welcomed them in this time and showed them the way to the grounds out back. Nanoha and Vivio sat on the patio a fair distance away from where we would spar. Soon I found myself standing opposite Fate, preparing myself for our match. This is it. No doubts. No worries. The only thing that matters is defeating my opponent.

"Angel Player, ignition!" I cried out. I felt the black flames as it washed over me. When it passed I was happy to see that my Barrier Jacket looked perfect. I would like to say this but there was this black cloak covering it that looked like it was made from Hellfire.

"All systems green. Bringing HUD online" said Angel Player. Sure enough after she said this a HUD popped up. This sure makes it seem like I'm playing a game with it displaying an HP and MP bar. However despite looking like a game I definitely knew it wasn't one.

"Angel Wings currently in storage form. I'm sure you were wondering where the cloak came from" she responded. Well that explains the cloak.

"Requesting permission to use a new program" asked Angel Player. That's right Angel Player possesses an advanced AI. I didn't even realize she made a new program. I should remind her to tell me when she adds something new or makes changes. That aside I gave her permission to use it.

"Overdrive online. Program is currently in prototype stage and will only be operating at 50%" she said. What does Overdrive do anyway?

Across from me Fate was getting ready as well. Lightning and thunder accompanied her transition. Her Barrier Jacket looked like a uniform with metal gauntlets and boots. Guess that makes sense considering her job. Her weapon, at least in its default form, was a halberd. "Haken Sabre" commanded Fate. Much to my dismay I saw her halberd transform into a ferocious scythe. The blade looks like it's made from lightning, so I suppose that's the manifestation of her magic. I should get my weapon ready as well.

"Hand Sonic." Black flames shot down from the top of my forearm down past my hands and when it dissipated revealed a crimson energy blade. The blade was wide along my forearm and tapered off past my hand. Good, it seems the modifications I made are working properly. It's about time we started.

Both Fate and I charged at each other, our blades crossing every time we made a pass. In terms of melee range I'm at a disadvantage considering the length of Fate's weapon. As she made another pass I stood my ground and blocked her attack with Phalanx. On my other hand I materialized another Hand Sonic and launched a thrust at her. No luck, she simply sped away from my counter attack. I charged towards her slashing with both Hand Sonics. She sped away again and with another command she took to the air. "Plasma Lancer" said her Device in a monotonous tone. Several arrow-like projectiles rained down on me. They made contact with Distortion and were deflected as the surface of Distortion rippled from the impact. Since I would be a sitting duck if Fate had more powerful range spells I chased after her into the air.

The fiery cloak that was covering my armour now turned itself into a pair of black fiery wings. "Synchronizing Blaze Slide with Overdrive. Movement speed boost now triple. Manoeuvrability improved," said Angel Player, "Oh and in combat situations you may use my code name, Ange, if it is easier for you." After she finished saying this I quickly put up Phalanx as a spinning blade projectile slashed its way through Distortion. Fate wasn't far behind as moments later I was blocking her Haken Sabre with both Hand Sonics. Damn she already figured out I can't use Phalanx in rapid succession. As she tried to flee I chased after her and now she was blocking both of my blades with her own barrier, Defenser. Just like with Blaze Slide I synchronized Overdrive with both my blades and it broke through Defenser. I was in for a nasty surprise as I came in for a lunge. "Jacket Purge!" she cried out. Her Barrier Jacket detonated just as my strike hit her. She managed to escape, landing a blow on me as she fled. "Time for me to up the ante as well!" she yelled out at me. "Bardiche, Riot Blade" she commanded. The guard just below the scythe head shifted down revealing a revolver mechanism. The guard went up every time it loaded a cartridge. So this is the Cartridge System. Her scythe then turned into a claymore.

"Opponent's weapon output exceeds Phalanx defence capabilities. Evading until an opportunity to counter would be the best course of action" suggested Ange. Fate disappeared for a moment. "Enemy is approaching from 6 o'clock at a vertical angle of 45 degrees" warned Ange. Sure enough Fate came from that location. She sped by me as I evaded, a sonic boom accompanying her pass. Just how fast can Fate move? She disappeared again after she made her pass. No doubt she was using whatever speed boosting spell she used before. I listened as I heard another sonic boom off to my right. So her move isn't as stealthy as I thought it was. I evaded her slash once again. As she passed by I used my IFF spell on her. There now my range spell can lock onto her. "Hell Hunt" said Ange. A dozen spheres of volatile energy chased after Fate. I might not be able to keep up with her speed but my spell can. At the very least I should be able to track down her location. "Plasma Lancer" Bardiche said. Crap she's going to intercept them. "Intercepting projectiles" replied Ange. One of the spheres sped far ahead and exploded in the middle of the Plasma Lancer barrage, eliminating every last one. The rest of the spheres closed in. Am I gonna get her?

I watched as each sphere detonated into a massive black fireball. It didn't look like I hit her. I felt her presence again. Oh no…she's right behind isn't she? "Yep. Storing Angel Wings for expulsion" Ange calmly replied. The wings instantaneously turned back into the cloak and launched itself at Fate. Not seeing it coming, it caught her off guard. "Blast Veil" Ange said. The cloak detonated and sent Fate crashing into the ground. Unfortunately I lost my flight capability by sacrificing my cloak and I was sent plummeting to the ground as well. "Blast Veil disrupts all enemy electronic devices within its blast range. I suggest you launch a finishing strike while she is unable to defend" suggested Ange. If I'm gonna do this, I better do it now since I can see Fate getting back on her feet. I charged at her as fast as I could and slashed down onto her shoulder. I felt my blade impact her shoulder. Suddenly I fell to my knees gasping for air, a sharp stabbing pain coming from my side. Fate managed to land a blow on me, a strong one at that since when I grasped my side the armour was deformed at the point of impact. "Recovery" said Bardiche. Fate stood up and shrugged off my hit. "Yay, Fate-san won!" cheered Vivio. Nanoha and Luci were applauding as well. What's going on? Why can't I breathe? "A broken rib has punctured your left lung. Synchronizing Overdrive with Regeneration and boosting Overdrive effect to 100%" replied Ange. Shortly after she said this I blacked out.

I woke up some time later, lying down on one of the lounging chairs on the patio. "I'm so sorry Riku! I didn't mean to overdo it!" Fate apologized fervently. She said that right after I blacked out Ange told them what had happened. I told her that it was alright saying that I've taken much worse injuries before. I saw that Vivio blushed in embarrassment. "It's ok Vivio, he wasn't talking about the time you roundhouse kicked him in the face" giggled Luci. She told the three of them what had happened to me before when a Demon almost killed me, although she altered some details so as not to let them know we were from another world in a different dimension. "Well now that Riku is all better he can make us all dinner" Luci jovially said, sporting a mischievous grin. Way to be a slave driver Luci…


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Burning Haired Blazing Eyed Hunter

I'm once again preparing to 'slide' over into another world. Knowing this I made sure to put extra effort into the meal I cooked for Fate and the Takamachi's. To think that a trip to get a replacement weapon would have helped me make some new friends. I hope that I made a good impression on those three. Although I said I want to explore the outside world that doesn't mean that I'll constantly being sliding to a new world. Sometimes to go forwards, you got to go back. And this world was one I'd certainly would love to revisit. That reminds me of an anime that the 'dream' me was watching. Don't remember much except Tanabata, field graffiti and three years ago. It was a simple enough scene…yet why does it seem so ominous to me? I'm sure it's nothing but then again once something exists you can't completely purge it from existence. Well I'll keep it in mind anyway. I'm sure if it feels that important it'll come into play eventually.

As for Ange let's just say that she was absolutely ecstatic working on the revisions with me. For starters she completely redesigned Hand Sonic. She mentioned that the widened blade section didn't do what I had in mind. In fact rather than being used offensively, I was using it as a shield. Adding the Cartridge System she elongated the length of the blade past my hands. She also replaced the section along the forearm with a hand guard and a shielding system, utilizing a more sustainable variation of Phalanx. She added a shielding system to the other armour components of my Barrier Jacket that decreases force of impact. And finally to avoid making that same blunder with Blast Veil she had to double up Blaze Slide, one with and the other without Angel Wings. She even copied one of the skills Fate used against me. According to the data she collected on it Fate was using a spell to temporarily and massively boost her speed. By redirecting the mana boost from the Cartridge System I could sustain it much longer than Fate could.

One thing has been bothering me lately though. It was Luci. For someone who's constantly watching over me she's made herself scarce. I've known from the beginning she was strange but I never did figure out why. The only clue was the forum she was on. Maybe I can get Ange to help recover the address of that site. If I join there's the possibility I can find out what she and this Cruxis were up to. Although that might not be a good idea. Luci is an enigma to me. I'm not entirely sure what she's capable of. She might figure out that I infiltrated the forum to snoop on her. In fact thinking on it I don't know _what_ she is. Guess all things in due time. Speaking of which Luci isn't around again. I'll just leave her a note that I'm sliding over to another world for a while. I quickly wrote a note containing the following:

_Thanks for bringing me to Midchilda. Not only do I have a new weapon but I have new friends as well. I'm sliding over to another world to explore and possibly field test the new revisions Ange and I made. If you need me I'm sure you have a way to locate me._

_- Riku Furude_

To be honest I'm not sure if I have a good enough grasp on sliding. Well guess I won't know till I try. What's the worst that could happen? On second thought I retract that statement; I don't want to imagine what could happen. Putting aside my uncertainties I opened a dimensional doorway. I wonder what's beyond this door? All I know is that it'll be somewhere I haven't been to before. With that I walked through.

What the? What's up with this world? It looked like a normal shopping district in what I believed to be modern day Japan. There were even people around. This world, or at least this area, had a red tint to it. The people where all completely gray tinted and weren't moving, heck they didn't even look like they were breathing. It's as if this world was in some kind of frozen purgatory. "A conflict is occurring approximately half a kilometre to your left. Shall we investigate?" asked Ange. She didn't have to tell me, I'd already heard that explosion before she mentioned it. I'd already activated Ange and was flying over to where the fight was happening.

The battlefield was covered in flames. There was what looked like a little girl in the midst of it. I would've considered rescuing her if it wasn't for her appearance that suggested she was the one who caused all this damage. Her hair looked like it was set ablaze, embers being blown by the wind in this place. It was her eyes that caught my attention though. Even at this altitude it seemed to burn even more brightly than her burning hair. Crap she's glaring at me. I should probably go down there and explain to her that I'm just a passerby. Well that plan just went out the window. With a pair of blazing wings she flew rapidly in my direction, katana drawn and lit on fire. I wanted to test the revisions but still…doesn't this seem too sudden? She could have at least asked me what my intentions were!

She fired off a fireball which thankfully was dissipated by Distortion. "Wait can't we talk first?" I yelled out to her. Instead she flew at me, full speed and made an attack pass. She turned around and managed to land a slash on my leg which cut through my Barrier Jacket. Regeneration, boosted by Overdrive, had already gone into effect healing the cut. "What kind of Denizen possesses black flames Alastor?" asked the little girl to an unknown person. "I've never encountered such a Denizen before. Be careful, if his abilities are any indicator, he's extremely dangerous" said the girl's necklace. Oh so that's who she was talking to. Wait…did I just end up back in Midchilda? That can't be though. She called me a Denizen. I never heard anyone use that term. If I could get this girl to listen to me we could sort this out. Guess I have no choice. I'll need to fight her if I want to live beyond today.

I activated Hand Sonic. Now sporting its new look I loaded up two cartridges into it. That should take care of any defences she should have. I charged at her and our blades clashed. I'm truly surprised her katana didn't get cut in half. Just as I was about to back off I planted the IFF magic circle on her. As she flew off I fired a dozen Hell Hunt spheres after her. Huh? Why is she flying towards me…oh crap. She stopped and grabbed my other arm. I watched as Hell Hunt closed in and I prepared for them to detonate. Instead they scattered in multiple directions and detonated a safe distance away. "Activated fire control safeguard" replied Ange. I sheathed Hand Sonic and punched her square in the face. "Can we talk _now_?" I asked her. She just floated in place grasping her face. Maybe I overdid it. "You should know I'm not one of these 'Denizens'. I'm just passing through. Well I was till you attacked me" I told her. Her katana was covered again in flames, no doubt preparing another fireball. No surprise a fireball came flying in my direction shortly afterwards. It just safely dissipated over Distortion again. "Ok seriously stop already! I'm not hostile so can you please stop? I don't even know why you would think I'm an enemy in the first place" I tried reasoning with her. "Well for one you don't exactly look harmless. And two no one but a Flame Haze or a Denizen can move inside a fuzetsu" she replied. Damn it I knew it from the first time I awoke that people would judge me based on my appearance.

Thankfully the fight ended before I had to use anymore force when a boy called out to her. "Shana! Stop! He's not a Denizen!" he yelled out to her. She flew down to where the boy was. "But Yuji look at his Power of Existence. It doesn't exactly look like a normal person's" Shana replied. "True his isn't normal by any means. However perhaps we should ask him first. After all I believe he's made it abundantly clear he does not wish to continue fighting" replied Alastor. Thank you some people who want to talk things over. She sheathed her katana into her cloak (how does that even work?) and it disappeared. Then her hair and eyes returned to what I assume are their normal color. Like this she actually looks like a cute normal girl. "I'm sorry for the trouble Shana caused you" apologized Yuji. Hey at least let her apologize personally, teach her to take responsibility for her actions. "My name is Riku Furude. I'm just a traveler that was passing through" I said. Ange introduced herself as well. Well now that this weird fiasco is over maybe they can tell me where I am and what's going on.

As we walked to Yuji's house Alastor explained that we were just in a Fuzetsu. Apparently it's some kind of sealing spell that's used to ensure that a Flame Haze's work happens in secret, away from the eyes of the unsuspecting public. He asked if I was a new Flame Haze, what my and Ange's title was. "Yes we are. He's the Angel of Slaughter and I'm the Angels' Vanguard" responded Ange to Alastor's question. Great now you made me seem even more evil than they already perceived me to be. Apparently Shana is known as the Burning Haired Blazing Eyed Hunter and Alastor as the Flame of Heaven. They asked us more questions as we walked along. At least it seems that Ange can lie well enough for them not to suspect us as sliders. We arrived at Yuji's house some time afterwards. Compared to Nanoha's place it certainly is much smaller. Now might be a good time to ask if I can stay here for a while. I hope I can because I don't have any money. Yuji's mother greeted us at the front door and invited us in. Finally a breather from everything that just happened.

XXX

Luci entered the camouflaged bunker. "Sorry about my temporary residence Luci" apologized Cruxis. She looked at the boy that stood before her. She remembered that Riku took on her appearance because of their contract. Now that she had met Cruxis once again in person she was shocked at how much the two looked like each other. "_If Riku were to bleach his hair and wear teal coloured contacts he could easily pass as Cruxis_" Luci thought to herself.

"So why did you come in person to report the results?" asked Cruxis.

"I think that given the results of his spar with Enforcer Testarossa he's more than capable of holding his own. In summary I think it's about time the little bird left the nest" responded Luci.

"True, Fate is an S+ rank mage so fighting her to a near draw is truly an exceptional feat. Although she does have limiters on her so she's fighting at a lower level in terms of power. Nevertheless her combat ability is top notch. With that in mind don't you think you're rushing things along?"

"Do you know where he is right now?"

"No, why?"

"You've read and watched Shakugan no Shana right?"

"Yes…You should know that while I'm patient I hate beating around the bush. Mind getting to the point?"

"He's there in Misaki City. It won't take him long before Shana teaches him how to detect Power of Existence."

"Oh I see. Since only half of his soul is his the rest are mine. From a Power of Existence perspective they would appear as a great discrepancy. Whether or not you keep your distance from him is up to you. However let him choose whether or not he pursues the source of his soul's anomaly. I want to preserve his freedom of choice by not interfering unless necessary."

"You know I just realized…," noted Luci "that I've been calling you Cruxis this whole time."

"Oh. I guess you have been calling me by that. Don't tell me you forgot my name already?" responded Cruxis as he laughed at Luci's obliviousness.

"No I still remember, don't worry. It's Friedrich Sankt Germain. It's just in the last few months you spent in the Real World you only communicated to me via the forum. Guess old habits do die hard…"

"I'm sorry about that. Maybe if it ever becomes pertinent I'll explain what happened…It's just something I don't feel comfortable sharing yet…" Friedrich trailed off melancholically.

"Well all things in due time…"


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Mismatched Soul

Well surprisingly enough I woke up pretty early. I exchanged greetings with Yuji who's also up rather early. After going through the stereotypical morning routine he seemed as if he was prepared to go to school.

"Does school start that early here?" I asked him.

"It'll still be a while till it does. Usually I train with Shana or Carmel-san before we go to school" he said.

Training? I guess from an exercise perspective that seems normal enough. But if he isn't doing it for that then I wonder why? Maybe he faces some danger from those Denizens Shana mentioned yesterday. Perhaps I should sit in for one of these training sessions. It's a learning experience after all so no harm in doing so.

"Mind if I join you and Shana? After fighting with her yesterday she certainly proved that she's a top notch fighter. Her training might prove useful in my travels" I asked Yuji.

"I don't mind. Although Shana still feels uneasy around you so I'll see if I can't convince her. Maybe you can even use this as a chance to get to know her better" Yuji replied.

I followed him to a riverside by a bridge. Since it was still early the sun was just beginning to rise showing the skyline of the city. This certainly is one of the more beautiful sights I've seen so far. Down on the river bank was Shana, her hair and eyes seemingly ablaze. Thankfully she had wooden training swords rather than the katana she was wielding before.

"Why did you bring him along?" Shana asked Yuji.

"He's just sitting in to see if he can learn anything new from our training. I don't think you have to be cautious around him anymore" he replied.

"Fine, if you say so Yuji…" she said hesitantly.

I sat down on the slope beside the river. I watched as the two practiced their swordplay against each other. It really seemed one sided. Shana more often than not had the upper hand although she is a Flame Haze after all. Yuji's offensive can use some serious work. However his ability to read the situation and react is quite good, well enough to dodge and block most of Shana's attacks. What she said next really caught my attention.

"Next I'll be attacking you normally as usual. This time though I'm gonna add one attack backed with killing intent. I want you to predict and react by detecting the spike in Power of Existence" concluded Shana before starting.

I watched as the two set out practicing this. As expected Yuji either blocked or dodged most of her 'normal' attacks. When the 'kill shots' were dealt he had a far more difficult time. The ratio of success to failure is certainly well below what is normally considered failure. I'm more curious as to how he detected it. For me I can read Shana's movements well enough to know when she launches one of her 'kill shots' so the need to detect Power of Existence is redundant. But this is just one of an innumerable number of worlds. What's to say there won't be an enemy out there whose movements I won't be able to predict through conventional sensory stimuli? I guess this power might be worth to learn after all. I've got nothing to lose, right?

As the two continued I carefully watched Shana. I did my best to suppress my instinct to use my normal senses to try and predict Shana's 'kill shots'. What seemed like a success rate well below failure doesn't anymore. At least he's been able to detect it. I haven't been able to even detect it once so far. Now I know how she was able to hold her own against me for as long as she did. I'll ask Shana to train me how to detect it since it's not going well at all.

"Shana would it be possible to train with you when you get home from school?" I asked her. She gave no reply and continued on.

"I guess she still feels uncomfortable around you. I'm sorry for the way she's treating you" apologized Yuji. "Although I do know someone else who might be able to teach you. Actually two of them" he continued.

After a few seconds scribbling some stuff on a piece of paper he gave it to me and left to follow Shana. It had the addresses of two people on them. Since both had titles they're probably Flame Hazes. The first, and closest, was the Chanter of Elegies, Marjorie Daw. The second was the Specialist of Everything, Wilhelmina Carmel. Ah that must be Yuji's other training partner. Well Marjorie is closest so I should head to her first. Hope she doesn't greet me like Shana…

Upon locating her residence (well it can't really be called hers considering the family name of the residence is different from hers) the sounds of objects clattering and smashing came from within. Thinking that she might've been attacked by a Denizen I rushed in. It turns out the noises weren't being caused by a Denizen but by an extremely inebriated Marjorie and…well I guess he's probably the owner of the house although he looks a bit young. After a while Marjorie tired herself out and fell asleep on a nearby couch. With a look of relief on his face the owner's attention shifted to me. Much to my dismay he picked up what looked like a grimoire and prepared to swing it at me. Oh great…death by textbook, that must be a first.

"Wait I can explain!" I pleaded with him.

"Hey let him explain first! I don't intend on being used as a club!" interjected the grimoire.

"Fine…but if he even seems the slightest bit or does anything suspicious I'm beating him to death" replied Keisaku.

Well at least I managed to make him stop before we ended up fighting. I don't need Ange's help to tell me he's just a regular human with no powers. If we did end up fighting I would've had to ease up a great deal to avoid killing him. It seems the grimoire is relieved too. Being spared the fate of being used as a convenient bludgeoning tool suggests it can probably feel pain. So I guess this isn't the first time it's been abused if it knows it can feel pain.

I introduced myself and Ange. I then proceeded to tell him the same story I told Shana. From his and the grimoire's reaction they certainly believe me and aren't at all cautious around me. All I have to do now is wait for Marjorie to sober up to a point where she can help me.

Sometime later she woke up from her alcohol induced slumber. I quickly explained my situation to her thus avoiding unnecessary conflict. She was hesitant at first but agreed to my proposition to train me after some 'convincing' (by that I mean quality liquor). We headed outside into Keisaku's backyard. It didn't seem large enough but according to Marjorie it should be enough for our training.

Marjorie's training is on a similar note to that of Shana but it has a different focus. Rather than detecting another's Power of Existence, it works on using one's own to cast spells. The drills she's making me do are strangely familiar to the ones Luci put me through to use Hellfire. After spending some time on these drills we finally moved on to the next stage of my training. It involved casting a Fuzetsu, a seal that uses one's Power of Existence to cast. My first tries were pathetic as it didn't do anything. However a few fails later I finally set one up. Not receiving a response from Marjorie I looked over in her direction to see why. She was looking at the flames that created the Fuzetsu.

"I've never seen anything like this before…" she said as she trailed off.

"Crap I did something didn't I?" I asked her to check if I made an error. I looked at the flames around the edge of the small trial Fuzetsu. The black flames made some sense to me since I've grown familiar to the sight of Hellfire. Intermingled with the black flames however were white flames, certainly nothing I've come across so far.

"The flame is a manifestation of your Power of Existence. The fact you have two different flames suggests that you don't have one but, two souls. But the 50/50 split suggests otherwise. Rather than having two whole souls you have half of yours and half of someone else's. This is the only plausible explanation since each soul manifests their Power of Existence in a unique way" she explained.

She made me conjure some fireballs from my Power of Existence and they produced the same results as the Fuzetsu flames. There's no way that this is just a fluke. Was this one of the secrets Luci was keeping from me? I wanted her to explain this to me so badly. All I have are questions but no answers. Excusing myself I quickly left. I need to find Luci, NOW.

* * *

Friedrich collapsed onto his knees. Luci and a young girl rushed to his side to see what had happened. He smiled and said "Guess he was in Misaki City after all."

"Why didn't you tell me that when he uses his Power of Existence it drains yours faster?" Luci furiously asked him.

Laughing he replied "I think I've made it abundantly clear why, Luci. And don't worry Evangeline I'll be fine. It'll take a lot more than a Fuzetsu and some fireballs to completely drain my Power of Existence."

Luci looked over to the young girl. She looks like she's barely out of elementary school. Her blonde hair came down to her shoulders and her eyes were a piercing blue. Her childish body was hidden under her robe and cloak. Aside from her head the only other part of her body Luci could see were her small hands peeking out from her large, baggy sleeves. Despite her size she easily helped Friedrich back unto his feet.

"No doubt he's probably gonna come looking for me. We'll meet…eventually. For now I'll let his search for me expand his experience. I just hope he doesn't cross paths with Serenity…"

"Serenity?" the two girls asked at the same time.

"It's a story for another time. Let's just say I long to hack her to tiny, unrecognizable pieces for what she did to my friends…" he said in a sombre, slightly angry tone.

The two simply looked at him, feeling both frightened and curious as to Serenity's and Friedrich's shared past. The two assumed this much: she was an enemy. Despite hoping with all his heart that Riku and Serenity will never meet he knew they would eventually.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Prelude to the Curse

I quickly slid back to Estate. I knew the chance of finding Luci was slim given her scarcity lately but I had to give it a shot anyway. Entering Estate I walked over to the table in the living room where we left our notes to each other. I found that my note was replaced by a stationery paper Luci uses. It read:

_I knew you were going to find out about it eventually but I didn't expect it to be so soon. Unfortunately I cannot be of much help to you since I know little about the situation myself. All I can suggest is for you to keep sliding till you find a way to find out more information .I'll do what I can to help you as well but I shall be investigating on my own. I wish you luck on your journey._

_- Luci_

_P.S. - Do __**NOT**__ use anything that requires you to use up your Power of Existence. I fear this may have unforeseen repercussions on the one whom you share a soul with. _

Damn…just when I need her the most. But she's right. It'll be easier to gather information if we split up. I should start here in Estate. That forum might have a clue as to why I am the way I am. With that in mind I headed up to the library where the computer terminals were located.

In no time at all I was on as a member of the forum. Going by the screen name AoS_XIII (yes I used the abbreviation of my title as my screen name) I poured over the forum. From what I could tell it was a site for a fan initiated project. In addition to hosting the project there were a few pieces of fan fiction written by other members. However these were just distractions. With Ange's help I found a way to locate all of the threads Luci replied in. Following this trail I learned a few things about Luci's life before she came here to Estate.

She was a friend of this Cruxis at the school they went to. Having a reputation for being arrogant and temperamental many avoided her as much as possible. Cruxis was the first one to reach out to her. Though it was difficult Cruxis finally broke through her façade and befriended her. The two kept correspondences both on and offline. However due to some complications in Cruxis' life these correspondences became limited to posts on the forum. The last post she put up was regarding Cruxis' status offline: comatose due to an unknown reason.

What's more interesting is the date of the reply. It was when I first awakened. At least this was a clue I might be able to go on. This Cruxis might be the one who I share a soul with. However there were still too many unanswered questions. My only choice was to keep sliding after all. Anyway Luci probably already knows this so she's probably trying to find her friend. I guess I should follow suit, although I'm gonna have to do some sleuthing of my own to figure it out myself. With nothing else in Estate to give me more clues I slid over to a new world.

The landscape before me was of a little rural village nestled in the mountains. I was on a road leading to this quaint rural village. Since there would probably be people I could ask there I headed in its direction. On my way there was an elderly man carrying a large load of goods with him heading towards the village. Seeing he was struggling with his load I offered him my assistance. Thankful for the help the elderly man became my travelling companion. He said that the village was called Hinamizawa. He told me it was unusual to see a traveller pass through it. Plausible enough considering this seems to be a time period where convenient means of transportation don't exist yet.

Upon reaching the village I knew there was little, if any, chance I would be able to find any information. However there was an equal chance of finding another slider who might have information I need. No sooner had I thought this when a woman dressed in a kimono passed me by running full speed. This is Japan so why would it be weird? That would be because the woman was carrying a pistol that couldn't possibly exist in this time period. Knowing this woman might be a slider I followed her.

"Combat in progress. Three contacts detected" alerted Ange. Sure enough the sound of gunfire being exchanged echoed throughout the forest that I followed the woman through. The dense forest gave way to swampland. I activated my Barrier Jacket, armed my Hand Sonic and flew over the quagmire.

"Biohazard detected. Activating selective permeability option on Distortion" warned Ange. Biohazard? Don't these sliders know they're endangering the villagers with their reckless attacks? I should probably hurry up and stop this before it gets out of hand. Using the speed boost spell Ange created I sped towards the combat zone.

"Well, well, well. How do you expect to stabilize the dimensional quake AND fight me at the same time? After all you need two people to stabilize one that large" the dark blonde haired woman said over the intense firefight.

When I entered the field of combat the woman with the kimono and the dark blonde haired woman were locked in an intense firefight. A bit of a distance away a blue haired girl was struggling to stabilize this 'dimensional quake'. It was obvious which side I should assist. I dove down towards the dark blonde haired woman with my Hand Sonic. I was surprised to find her simple combat knife blocked my boosted Hand Sonic. I told the woman in the kimono to help her comrade and that I would deal with the dark blonde haired woman. Saying a quick, but heartfelt, thank you she left to help her.

"Friedrich you traitorous bastard. You think that dying your hair and wearing contacts would be enough of a disguise? Come now you insult my intelligence! You even replaced your badass scythe with that pathetic excuse for a kitchen knife" she yelled out to me.

"Did you just call me a kitchen knife? I'll have you know that I'm an advanced Intelligent Device system!" an insulted Ange replied.

"My, my…big words from such a small threat" nonchalantly replied the woman.

Friedrich? I'm sure this woman has me mistaken for someone else. Anyway I've never met her before. All I know is that she's pretty damn annoying. However I can't let that get to me. Her gun is useless because of Distortion but that knife is still a threat. After getting an infuriated Ange to analyze it all I learned was that it was a standard issue military combat knife. How could it possibly block Hand Sonic? It should've been sliced clean in half along with her arm.

"Well unfortunately I can't stay any longer to entertain mere plebeians. I could care less whether you stabilize that quake or not. I've already delivered the biohazard and it's in the village's drinking water. Enjoy!" she jeered before she slid away.

"Warning! Multiple large scale dimensional quakes! Suggest immediate evac of current world!" warned Ange with blaring volume.

"But what about the villagers? We can't just abandon them! You agree with me right, Saya?" pleaded the blue haired girl.

"We have no choice Kanata! We don't even know what kind of biohazard Serenity brought into this world; let alone how to counteract it. Let's hope that Hanyuu can find a way to solve it. She's already made it clear she wants to stay no matter what" replied Saya.

"Well we have to get out of here right now. I'm not sure what a 'dimensional quake' is but if it's got Ange this worried it can't possibly be good" I said.

"Approximately ten minutes till dimensional quakes jam sliding abilities. If Riku hurries he should be able to warn Hanyuu back in the village" suggested Ange.

I didn't even bother waiting for Saya or Kanata to reply. As soon as Ange finished I was already flying full speed back to the village. Unfortunately in my haste I forgot to ask the two them how Hanyuu looked like. Incompetence +1 point.

"If this Hanyuu is a Slider, like I expect her to be, she should stand out" suggested Ange. What the hell does she mean by 'stand out'?

As soon as I landed back in the village the villagers were scrambling away from me screaming "Demon!" While in other scenarios I would try to explain myself I was actually thankful they were causing such a ruckus. It would seem the chaos attracted Hanyuu's attention. The purple haired Hanyuu was walking towards me, sword drawn.

"Who are you?" she asked. I'm surprised. She didn't go in sword swinging right away.

"No time for that. Do you know about the dimensional quakes?" I asked in return.

"I already told those two I would be staying behind no matter what. Tell them to leave before they get stranded too" she replied.

"That's fine, they respect your wishes. I'm here to warn you. Serenity introduced some kind of biohazard into the village's water supply. All they ask of you is to help find a way to save the villagers" I asked of her.

She laughed and said "I know. I suggest you go with them. Kanata will need another Slider to take my place while I'm here. If you follow Serenity you'll find who you're looking for. I know your friend told you not to go off chasing her but Luci's just trying to keep one last secret from you. I can guarantee you if you do as I ask of you, you won't be disappointed."

"Who told you this?" I asked. How'd she know all this? We just met after all.

"Well…that's my secret," she replied, winking, "now go. You don't have much time left."

I decided to take her up on her offer. Why's everyone keeping secrets from me? Is what they're trying to prevent me from finding out worth going to all this trouble? At least I know that I have some secret benefactor. I guess I'll just have to figure out everything for myself. I left Hanyuu to go back to Saya and Kanata. Surprisingly the two waited for me.

"You have under a minute to evac before it becomes impossible to slide to another world" reminded Ange.

"Hanyuu said you might need a new Slider to take her place while she's here" I said relaying Hanyuu's wish.

"We can talk about that when we go to Celestia. For now we should go. Anyway I have faith in Hanyuu. She'll find a way to save the villagers" Saya quickly replied. With only a few moments to spare we slid out of Hinamizawa before it was too late.

* * *

"I've done what I can to try to prevent Riku from finding out about you. But I think the events that have transpired in Hinamizawa voided my attempts" Luci said.

"Why would you even do that in the first place? If he wants to find out let him. I mean it's not like anything is going to happen when we meet" Friedrich calmly replied.

"That's what I'm afraid of. We don't know what'll happen when you do meet. For all we know he could erase you from existence" she said worryingly.

Friedrich took Evangeline aside to speak with her privately. "I was the one who told the Slider there about Riku's situation. I'm not sure why Luci's so worried about him finding me…"

"She has a point though. We're not sure what will happen when you meet. Right now you should be more concerned about finding a way to counter the draining of your Power of Existence."

"As always you're right. I'm still curious as to how he came to possess half my soul. I can tell you it wasn't my doing. Oh well…all in due time."


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Celestia

Well that was cutting it a bit close. At least all of us are here in one piece. Yet another beautiful landscape lies before me. Though something seems a bit odd. Other than the topography why is there no curvature of the surface? It remains level as far as the eye can see, probably even further. I wonder just how big Celestia is.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Riku Furude. I'm a slider. Up until now I've just been sliding to explore and enjoy myself"

"A pleasure to meet you. Thank you very much for your help. My name is Kanata Izumi. I'm the headmaster of Celestia's Fantasia Slider Academy. This is Saya Minatsuki. She's my Slider partner."

"If you wish to take Hanyuu's place you're going to have to first become a Slider. To do this you must first get a recommendation by passing a regional examination. After that you'll be given the opportunity to try for Fantasia's entrance exams. If you can complete all of this I can take you on as my Slider apprentice."

Hmm so it's somewhat like a school system. I've grown so used to teaching myself that I forgot this is how most youth learn. But I wonder if I'm getting sidetracked? Then again Hanyuu was the one who said that if I follow Serenity's trail I'd meet for sure the person I'm looking for. Well at least I've gotten a new clue. This 'Friedrich' Serenity talked about supposedly looks exactly like me. Maybe he's the one I'm looking for. I guess I'll be taking the two exams after all.

"Alright then I'll take the examinations. I just have one question. Where am I supposed to do this?" I asked.

"You can take the regional examinations here in the Capital. It's a bit more difficult than other regions because of the sheer volume of people that try to get a recommendation. However I have faith that you'll do excellently" Kanata replied.

"Aren't you putting too much hope on this newbie, Kanata? I mean we just met him today. But if you believe in him then I guess he'll do fine. You have a knack for recruiting some of the best Sliders Celestia has known after all" Saya said with a sigh of resignation.

"You should know more about Celestia and its peoples. Celestia is what people refer to as the afterlife. As such the majority of people here are Spirits. They can choose to reincarnate as a living being at the cost of losing their memories. Alternatively those with the ability to slide can gain a physical body as long as they are not in their homeworld. There are also Half-Spirits. These are people whose souls have left their body due to coma or a near death experience. They are capable of holding a physical body even in their own world although there are varying limitations if they're sliders. The rest are the eight Divines, with the eighth Divine bearing the title Shinigami. The Divines are guardian spirits that act as Celestia's protectors while the Shinigami brings the souls of the deceased to Celestia. With the exception of the Shinigami each Divine has a shrine built in their honor. All the Divines live amongst the general public in disguise and reveal themselves only if needed. Since many of them had not needed to reveal themselves they have forgotten they are Divines."

"Celestia is a unique world that exists in both the Real and Fictional World. The deceased from both worlds come here. In order to meet the spacing needs Celestia expands and shrinks according to the population. Among the numerous cities and settlements there are three capital cities: one on the Fictional side, another on the Real side and in the center is the Capital. Though it exists in both Worlds, it's a one way trip. Unless you're a slider or reincarnate there's no way to leave Celestia if you're deceased."

Hmm so this is what the afterlife is like. If Saya didn't explain all that to me, it wouldn't seem much different than any of the other worlds I've visited so far. I wonder if Saya and Kanata are among the deceased. For that matter is Hanyuu also a Spirit too? I can't believe that in their respective worlds they might've already passed on. To think right now I have an opportunity that many would sacrifice everything for; to be able to speak in person with those who have passed on.

Realizing I'd almost forgot I asked "Oh before I forget…what are Sliders and what do they do?"

"A slider as you know, being one yourself, is anyone with the means to travel between worlds. Slider is a term for a member of the DSO or Dimensional Slider Organization. Our job has always been to keep the balance of the worlds by eliminating Demons. Even without our assistance a world could suppress an invasion of Demons. However there are some worlds, for whatever reason, that become overrun with Demons. It is these worlds that we tend to focus our attention on" Kanata responded.

She continued "Recently though we've expanded our mission by collecting Objects. These are anything that contains the essence of the world from which it came from. As a result they can grant anyone with incredible power."

Saya pulled out her pistol. She then took out the pistol's magazine. I looked and saw that it had a single bullet in it. It was a lustrous, red-orange bullet. According to Ange's analysis it's made of the same material as the armour plating on my Barrier Jacket, orichalcon.

I commented "If I didn't interfere you would've run out of ammo."

"This is an example of a regular Object. It's an orichalcon bullet infused with the essence of the World of Black Cat. The material it's made of makes it superior to nearly any other ballistic projectile out there. The thing that makes it an Object is the fact that even with a single bullet you can fire an unlimited number of rounds" Saya explained.

Following Saya's actions, Kanata took out a necklace with a feather on it. A mirror-like sheen and a faint white aura makes it seem like an angel's feather. "This is a World Object. Out of all the Objects that exists in a world it contains the purest essence, pure enough to be considered an exact copy of the world's essence. As a World Object from the World of Air it grants its owner angel wings. The feathers from the wings are indestructible. Each individual feather can be manipulated with great ease. Each time a feather is used up another takes its place."

So an Object's power and classification is dictated by the purity of its respective world's essence. A regular Object can grant someone who otherwise has no power with enough to match those who do. A World Object can give someone with no power so much that they could easily defeat even the strongest out there. Certainly in the wrong hands either type could cause great destruction. No surprise Sliders would collect them to regulate their usage. I wonder if it's finders keepers?

"So if a Slider happens upon an Object they keep it?" I inquired.

"Regulation states a Slider can only have one Object on them at any time. They are free to keep an Object they find. If they have no use for it, or can't, they are free to browse Objects found by other Sliders to find one more suited to them" Kanata responded.

"I might even consider giving you one if you become a Slider" teased Saya.

An Object would be nice although I'd much prefer Ange. She might not be on par with an Object but at least she makes for interesting company. Not to mention her numerous features make her a practical asset. Nevertheless I'd like to have an Object that compliments me. I wonder what kind would suit me though.

"I believe that's plenty of information for one sitting. You are probably quite exhausted so feel free to recuperate at my home. Just saying but I have unusual company over sometimes. Try to avoid the urge to flee in terror or fight them" Kanata said calmly.

Well…this going to be interesting…

* * *

"Well I think Riku may have just found an occupation that suits him perfectly" said Friedrich as he unpacked some of his belongings.

Luci responded "If that's what he wants the he can go for it. If he won't listen to me I at least want him to be happy."

"This is one of my family's villas. It has plenty of room for all of us but it isn't as fancy as Estate. The beach and beautiful view is certainly a welcome benefit. Plus it's fairly secluded so people won't find Friedrich too easily" explained Evangeline as the other two unpacked their belongings.

Perplexed by the end of Evangeline's explanation, Luci asked "I can understand if it's Riku but why other people?"

"Long story short…Friedrich and I have a legendary reputation in this world. It's enough to get people to come after us. If we cause too much of a ruckus and Riku's here it'll be too easy for him to find us."

"It won't take me long to convert this villa into a base of operations. After all we're just observing so it's not like we'll be staging assault ops or anything," commented Friedrich, "So I suggest we all get comfy, sit back and watch."

"Legendary…what's that supposed to mean?"


	13. Chapter 12

Chapter 12: Unlimited Firearms

At last the day for my recommendation exam has come. I've spent the last few weeks watching other hopefuls take their recommendation exams. From what I can gather the exam changes according to the proctor. The exams range from something like a doubles team death matches (minus the death of course) to retrieving an Object hidden on a world. As such I've kept track of which proctor gives which exam so at the least I have some idea what's coming. But right now…I'm more concerned with _actually_ getting to the exam location.

"Why'd you wake up so late?" Saya yelled out as we ran full speed towards the exam location.

I responded "Hey, Ange was the one who failed to tell me that I had accidently shut off the alarm in my sleep!"

"We can play the blame game or we can all haul ass…it's up to you two" innocently replied Ange.

Yeah you're just trying to shift the blame off yourself. But she does have a point. If I don't speed it up, I won't make it. Wait…speed it up? I gave myself a mental facepalm. I forgot all about Blitz, the speed enhancement spell Ange copied off of Fate. I asked Saya to stop and tell me the directions for the rest of the way. Upon getting the directions off of Saya I activated Ange, loaded up two cartridges per gauntlet and sped off. Thankfully Celestian airspace is like the German Autobahn: no speed limit. Hope I don't break any windows down below…

Thankfully I made in time to register for the exam. The registrar quickly led me off to where the exam was taking place. Entering the room I quickly felt singled out. From the looks of the various cups scattered about the room the others have been here for a while. Hmm that's weird…everyone seems to be off in pairs. I guess that means the exam is being done in groups of two.

"Sorry man but you're stuck with me" said one of them as he approached me.

I replied "Why would you be sorry? If anything I should be sorry for being late."

"The name's Jonathan Winchester. You probably should know that I have no other special power other than being able to slide. The only trump card I got is my Object, Unlimited Firearms" explained Jonathan.

Noticing that the proctor had entered the room I told him "Well better than nothing right? Anyway the proctor is here so we should probably listen up. Don't worry I won't hog all the action."

The proctor had everyone gather around the large screen in the room. A topographical map came onscreen. He explained that the exam is escorting a VIP down a mountainside. To throw in an additional obstacle there would be small clusters of Demon and enemy sliders along the path vying to stop us from getting the VIP down. Not surprisingly quite a few of those taking the exams were worried when they heard Demons and enemy sliders were involved. Considering my own run in with Demons I don't blame them. The proctor then added that this would all be done in a virtual setting, akin to that of a virtual reality game. Safety aside this would ensure everybody is taking the exact same exam. Those that were worried breathed a sigh of relief.

"However before you do the exam keep this in mind. If you're that scared about engaging hostile forces you should consider a position that doesn't involve fieldwork" finished the proctor. "You have 15 minutes to create a strategy. Once prep time is over I'll escort you all to the simulator. Good luck."

Everyone dispersed to their own part of the room. The room was filled with the hushed murmuring of people trying to come up with a strategy. Eventually Jon and I found a fairly secluded part of the room for us. Before we could discuss any strategies we had to first know what the other was capable of.

"Well like I said before I don't have any special powers. My Object lets me create any known firearm so long as it isn't magical or requires magic. One of the drawbacks is that when I summon a weapon is that it only has one magazine worth of ammo loaded. If I want more I'd have to summon the gun again which sometimes takes longer than the actual reloading process. On the plus side as long as it doesn't require magic or anything like it I can use whatever attachments or ammo I want. So now you know what I can do. What about you?"

"Unlike you I can use magic. Synthesis, Regeneration, flight, damage and enhancements are all the things I can do. For my primary weapon I use one or two swords called Hand Sonic. Speed and firepower are my primary strong points so I'm not exactly security escort material. I do have a homing ranged attack but it can't track unless I tag the target with a spell that acts like an IFF. My Intelligent Device, Ange, can provide me with an armor protected by an energy shield, a barrier and a HUD which displays enemy positions. So overall with some minor tweaking I can adjust as I need to."

The two of us looked over the map. This escort mission was gonna take longer than either of us thought. As for the path itself we divided it into sections we referred to as 'terraces' due to its geological structure. In all there were twenty of them, each one descending approximately 100 meters. Given my defensive capabilities I would be the one escorting the VIP. It was also my job to take out any enemy contacts that Jon can't or couldn't take out as well as those that are within my striking distance. Jon on the other hand would act as ranged support and scout out the area ahead for enemy units. After working out some specifics like where his sniping positions would be we got ready to undertake the exam.

"Prep time is up! Please follow me to simulation room!" ordered the proctor. We followed the proctor to a spacious room, made even more spacious by the fact it was completely white. He said "Please wait here while the simulation starts" and then left. A few moments later the pure white walls and floor were snaked by hundreds of what seemed like glowing conduits. With a blinding flash of white light our exam began.

Sure enough when we could finally see again we were on a mountain top. We walked over to where the path down began. Waiting there for us was a girl with long golden brown hair and violet eyes. When she spotted us she quickly ran over to us and introduced herself.

"I'm Alice Pendragon, nice to meet you both. Thanks for bailing me out. I was sent to scout this area after we had reports from Intel that there was an Object up here. Since I found nothing here I was about to head down. But then those guys showed up…"

Jon beat me to the punch by summoning a sniper rifle to look down the mountainside. "Well…I hope you can take out that many guys" he said as he handed me his sniper rifle. I looked through the scope and could see plenty of them all along the path down. So much for little clusters. And I'm pretty sure that's not all of them. There must at least be a few of them that have taken up hidden ambush positions.

"Jon start taking them out. The less there are, the easier it'll be for us to get down" I said.

"Are you insane? Look at how many of them there are!" he rebutted.

"Well they certainly aren't gonna kill themselves now are they?" I joked. He gave me a 'you good sir, are nuts' look. Nevertheless he started with his task, the thundering crack of his rifle echoing down, sending them scrambling for cover. "So, Alice…care for a stroll?" I asked her. "Don't mind if I do. Hope you can do your job properly" she said back. I hope so too, because if we don't its game over.

We proceeded down the first few terraces without resistance thanks to Jon's reluctant hard work. Though we were moving at a pretty brisk pace I still constantly checked my surroundings for any hidden hostiles. By the time we got to the seventh terrace we were finally being attacked by hostile forces. However they weren't much of a challenge. As we kept pressing on, the enemy resistance grew. We could still hear Jon hard at work but Alice noted that the time between shots was speeding up. That could only mean larger groups of enemies lay ahead. And sure enough our worst fears were realized.

"This isn't good. There's way too many of them down there. Not only that but they've started hiding behind cover and there's even some of them that are impervious to ballistics fire. I'll keep doing what I can but it won't be long before you'll have to deal with most of them yourself" Jon told us over the communicator I gave him before we started.

"It's going to get pretty crazy once we get to the last few terraces Alice" I said to her.

"So I hear. I wouldn't worry about it. After all I'm not completely unarmed" she replied. She took out an ornate longsword from an equally ornate sheath. She asked "So ready to slash our way through?" Working in tandem we kept clearing out group after group of enemies on each of the terrace. Those with the audacity to try and surprise us more or less tasted the edge of our blades. It's a good thing this AI can fight as well as she can. Soon we finally reached the last terrace before the end of the course.

"Hey Riku, Alice, watch it down there. The last group set fire to that last terrace so it might be a bit dangerous passing through there. I'll join up with you two in a couple minutes in case something goes wrong" warned Jon.

Just as Jon said the path ahead was lit on fire. Being cautious of enemy forces using this fire as a chance to ambush us I had Ange check the area for hostile contacts. "Well that's odd," she said, "there's a pretty huge enemy signature here but I don't see anything. And before you ask it isn't cloaked or anything." With the fire being an obstacle I synthesized some water to flood the path. As soon as the water touched the fire we heard what sounded like the pained cries of hundreds of people burning alive. Weird…fire doesn't scream.

A few moments later the ground shook as a large flaming beast rose up out of the ground. Its scales were like jagged pieces of obsidian while its main body was made of molten magma. A raging inferno burned all along its back and the pungent odour of burning flesh came off it. It once again let out what I considered was its roar.

"Oh that's why I didn't see it. It buried itself underground. Well partially at least" commented Ange. Yeah just a little late detecting where it was Ange. While I was at it I asked Ange as to what exactly this thing was. Unfortunately being a device of Midchildan origin it had little information on Demons. I asked both Alice and Jon if either one knew what it was.

"Salamander" the two replied in unison.

"Really that thing is called a Salamander? Who the hell came up with that? It looks like a dragon" I replied.

Alice explained that Salamanders were composed of the spirits of victims of fires and explosions. They seem to be a particularly rare type of Demon since the amount of spirits needed to create one is borderline ridiculous. Unfortunately she said it's much like a tank: explosive fireballs are its primary ranged attack and a torrent of flames are its secondary attack. On top of that its scales are as hard as diamonds. A living tank indeed.

Unfortunately it started firing off its explosive fireballs at us. When I tried to get closer for a hit it flooded the area in front of me with a wave of flames. Since I couldn't get close I tried to fire off Hell Hunt at it. It didn't finish it off but it at least did some damage. However all it did was enrage it further and it started to go berserk, raining down burning hot flames and explosive fireballs all around.

Seeing that the situation was grim Alice suggested "I'm not sure how true this is but I heard if you douse it with water it becomes weaker."

With few effective available options I unleashed a massive torrent of water down on it. A massively expanding cloud of scalding steam radiated from where the water hit the Salamander. I stood in between Alice and the cloud of steam using Phalanx to keep her from getting injured. Fortunately after the cloud dissipated it would seem that her suspicions were true. Everywhere the water made sufficiently long enough contact with the main body had solidified into brittle volcanic rock.

Not long after I heard Jon yell out "Fire in the hole!" A pair of rockets slammed into the Salamander's now exposed back. The twin explosions sent a shower of volcanic rock raining down on Alice and I but, they were thankfully deflected off by Distortion. While it seemed paralyzed from its injury I ran over to where the two rockets had blasted a sizeable crater on its back. Within the crater was a shining spherical object. Not knowing what it was I pulled it out. We all breathed a sigh of relief as the Salamander collapsed into a pile of ash and debris.

The same could not be said for my Barrier Jacket's shields. An alarm blared showing that holding the orb quickly decreased it down past the 10% mark. As soon as I realized what was happening I dropped it onto the ground where it broke. A myriad of what I could only think were the spirits that comprised the Salamander poured forth from the orb until it too was reduced to ash and debris. I made a mental note not to let my guard down until every possible threat was explored and eliminated, when possible.

With the final threat eliminated we headed to the end of the course. The simulated world around us began to dissolve away. As it did I heard Alice say "This isn't the last time we'll meet Riku…" in a rather unnerving manner. I hope that was just a glitch, not a Skynet in the making…

When our perception switched back to the simulation room everyone, proctor included, was looking at us with awestruck looks on their faces. What are they all worked up for? Jon and I seem to have finished last amongst all the other participants.

"Recommendations earned you two…" was all the stunned proctor managed to say before he dismissed everyone.

* * *

The proctor went into the control room for the simulation room where the previous group had just taken their exams. The technician in the room too had a stunned look on his face.

"The simulation for that pair exceeded the set parameters…by a lot" the technician managed to stutter out.

Regaining his composure the proctor asked "Whose recommendations were they trying to earn?"

"Furude's recommendation came from Commander Izumi while Winchester's came from a Vice-Commander I'm not too familiar with" he replied.

"Is there a possibility that High Command altered the simulation parameters?" asked the proctor trying to understand how what had just happened occurred.

"Negative. These simulations are all exactly the same for the purpose of acting as a control. However looking over the data now there seemed to be a third participant with them. And yes that third participant hacked in."

"An enemy spy?"

"Most likely. The source of the alteration came from the same system that the girl used."

"Good job. I'll alert other examination centers to check for such things although I think that Furude was their sole target. Highly unlikely that Winchester, who doesn't seem to have any power of his own, was the target. He could easily be an enemy agent as well so I'll have some Sliders keep an eye on him."

The proctor continued "But damn, that kid showed me up. Never in my whole career as a Slider field agent have I ever taken on that many contacts _and_ a Salamander to top it off? I could see why Izumi chose that kid; he's got real potential. I look forward to seeing him in action on the field."

* * *

"I trust that assignment wasn't too difficult for such a great hero as you, Princess Pendragon?" inquired Serenity.

"As a Knight Errant, mind you this is a trope not my actual position, I don't dwell in any particular kingdom and thus rule over nothing. Neither am I considered a great hero" corrected Alice.

Serenity added however "Though it may be a necropolis now, Camelot is still a kingdom that is highly regarded. And do you not uphold justice where it does not reach? That to me is one way of defining a hero."

"The only princess that I am now is the Princess of Massacre. I'm hardly a shining example of the values of my father's once shining utopia, as such I don't even consider myself a hero in the making" she concluded.

"Don't get yourself down dear Princess. Nor should you let yourself be tied down by archaic conventions. I promise you that I'll aide you in destroying the organization that ordered the destruction of you beloved kingdom" reassured Serenity.

Alice didn't know why but recently it feels like she's just being strung along by Serenity. True organizations will have the odd corrupt faction. However the way Riku fought, both completing his mission flawlessly while keeping his 'comrades' safe, was admirable. How she wished she could be like that. Surely if there are people like him in their organization the razing of Camelot couldn't have been an official order.

Assuming it was unofficial…who was the one who gave the order?


	14. Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Princess of Massacre

"Are you alright Riku?" Kanata called out as she came running in my direction.

"Um yeah, I guess. Oh I earned your recommendation by the way!" I replied, unsure as to why there was concern in her tone. She breathed a sigh of relief. Oddly enough she grabbed my hand and proceeded to essentially drag me away. For someone of her build she sure is quite strong.

"Didn't the proctor tell you anything?" Kanata plied curiously.

Not entirely sure where she was going with all of this I simply said "No. He gave me and my partner our recommendation then we left." I added though to see how she would react "Everyone seemed awestruck or surprised though…You wouldn't happen to know why would you?"

She explained that the simulation that Jon and I partook in was altered. According to the specifics it may as well have been a live-fire exercise. I didn't even realize that because of that whatever injuries we sustained in the simulation would've carried back to our physical bodies. I guess it was a lucky call that I chose to let Jon hang back rather than charge in, gun blazing. Not that he would've anyway given his apprehension.

However that didn't seem to be her primary concern. What she was concerned with was _who_ was in there with us. Wait what…? There was somebody else in there with us? That may explain why who we thought was the AI was so much more helpful than we imagined. But what would compel someone to help us? Especially if they knew the dangerous parameters set for our simulation.

Naturally Kanata asked me for a description of our third member. I told her what I remembered, thankfully still fresh in my memory. She thought about it for a minute then proceeded to continue to drag me along. I understand the urgency Kanata but you could just ask me to follow you…

We entered what she described as the DSO HQ. Unusually enough it seemed strikingly similar to TSAB HQ. However unlike my visits to TSAB here Security practically let us just waltz right on through. Just how high up on the DSO chain of authority was Kanata?

"What do you need today Commander Izumi?"

"I'm accessing restricted archives. I've given Riku-kun here permission to peruse those archives so no need to hold him up."

"Understood ma'am. I do hope you both find what you are looking for."

As we entered the room I couldn't help but ask Kanata "Why did you ask about Alice? Does she work for Serenity's organization?"

"That's what we're here to find out. I know I've heard her name somewhere before but I can't remember it off the top of my head. The restricted archives allow us to view pretty much everything DSO Intel has collected over the years. If we're going to find out anything about her, it'll most likely be in here."

Kanata booted up the sole terminal in the room. After she logged in (and yes she did ask me to turn around. Both cliché and pointless considering Ange could've just told me anyway…) a seemingly simple search bar opened up. Cutting to the chase she typed in "Alice Pendragon". The results? Not quite as simple as there were others who shared the name. After tinkering around with the search parameters she excluded Celestian civilians as well as DSO personnel. Ominously only a single entry remained. It was a casualty report.

_**Operation 'Spearhead' Casualty Report**_

_Name of Deceased: Pendragon, Alice_

_Status: Civilian. Camelot Nobility; Princess _

_World: Not Catalogued _

_C.O.D.: Exsanguination_

The picture matched the Alice I met inside the simulation. Knowing that I knew there was no way that this report was true. Quite a few other possibilities of how she was in that simulation with us came to mind.

"I'll have someone look into this report as it's obviously fabricated" noted Kanata.

I asked "So she _is_ alive, right?"

"You fought alongside her didn't you?" Kanata asked me back.

"Bring up 'Operation 'Spearhead'" and let's see what that's about."

The three of us poured over the wealth of data available on it. Likewise there was an equally long list of casualties; both civilians and operatives alike. From what the three of us could put together the operation could be summed up in two words: utter failure. Not only did the intel available to the operatives turn out to be completely false but _every_ operative that took part in the actual attack perished. And it wasn't just a few dozen or so. The total number of operatives that took part in the actual assault numbered in the _thousands_. It seems overkill but considering the premise of the assault, an entrenched and well armed branch of Serenity's organization making the city their fortress, it would've been justified if it were true.

"Riku take a look at this" said Ange.

It was the C.O.D. for all the operatives. I saw what Ange wanted to point out. Every last one of them had the same one. All of them died from exsanguination. Looking further at more detailed autopsy reports showed the reason to be the same as well. They were all more or less cut in half by a single slash. One thought came to mind though. If all of these operatives had some means to slide why didn't they? The tide of battle obviously turned quite quickly but some of them should've been able to get away right?

"That report is definitely fabricated. How could anyone have missed this?" fumed Kanata as she brought up a recording of the battle from the frontlines from the perspective of an Agent.

It was an operative named Agent Jenkins. It was pretty easy to deduce that he and other members of their group were trying to flee. In the background the sounds of battle were raging.

"This is Agent Jenkins of Fireteam Sierra! Request immediate evac on our position!" he cried out, fear heavy in his voice. After he said that there were several anguished screams behind him. He turned around to see that everyone else in his group had been slain. The view quickly switched to that of the night sky, lit a blazing crimson by the numerous fires that were noted to be burning at the time. And then his sight was fixed on the attacker. It was Alice, her otherwise beautiful dress drenched in blood. The look on her face showed a disturbing mix between fear and absolute disconnect from reality. At this point the only background noise left were the fires raging throughout the city.

"This is Agent Jenkins of Strike Group Sierra! I need evac, backup, ANYTHING! Oh god…get away from me!" he fearfully exclaimed as his rifle came onscreen and its deafening staccato filled the unnerving silence. I watched in horror as all of the bullets simply deflected off of a barrier surrounding her.

Jenkin's managed a brief fear striken scream before her sword, the same one she used in the simulation, swung into view briefly. The perspective spun about as what I could only assume was Jenkin's head was decapitated. Whatever his head hit managed to get Alice back in view. She was on the ground crying, Jenkin's headless body lying in front of her. "What have I done…" she tearfully said before the screen blacked out. The message 'UNEXPECTED END OF TRANSMISSION' came up before an option to replay came up.

Suffice it to say Kanata, and hell even Ange, was unnerved by what they just saw. Kanata was on the verge of vomiting and Ange remained silent. A few moments later Kanata regained her composure.

"I'll definitely have an inquiry over this operation. There are far too many suspicious components to all this. For now I'll make sure all Sliders report any sightings of Alice Pendragon straight to Command. I have a few questions for the girl…" contemplated Kanata.

"So why was she with us in the simulation? Was she spying, sabotaging or trying to kill me?" I inquired.

"I can't say. There's no proof that she's working for Serenity's organization. At best she would be an external member or Serenity's apprentice" she replied.

"This isn't going to stop me from becoming a full fledged Slider, you know," I replied back trying to lighten the mood, "just another mystery for me to solve when I become one."

"Just watch yourself, ok?"


	15. Chapter 14

Chapter 14: School Rules

"Name and recommendation please."

I responded "Riku Furude" as I handed her Kanata's recommendation.

"Ah, Commander Izumi recommended you? The Fantasia entrance exams are quite popular with the citizens of Celestia. Once the audience sees who recommended you don't be surprised by the number of people watching you" commented the receptionist.

I know she tried to compliment me but that comment just made me more nervous. From what Kanata told me the number of participants in the recommendation exams _pales_ in comparison to the entrance exams. Whereas there were twenty in the recommendation exam, there's two thousand for this exam. It would seem this room expands to accommodate all the participants. Good thing too considering how large as it may look outside it certainly doesn't look big enough for two thousand people.

I walked around the crowd to find Jon. No luck it seems. He's probably taking it some other time. I walked over to one of the few tables left where there was space. Other than me, there were already two girls seated there enjoying their drink. Come to think of it I'm actually a bit thirsty myself. Maybe I should get a drink too.

"I hope I'm not bothering you two" I said as I synthesized myself a bottle of cold root beer.

"Not at all! By the way my name's Hanami!" the taller of the two jovially introduced herself. Though she looked peaceful her red-orange eyes and fire red hair served to compliment her equally fiery (literally) flower attire.

"I'm Solipse…And you're not a bother at all…" said the smaller of the two shyly soon after. She was shy and quiet. Her pale skin, crystal blue eyes and silver hair made her look like, combined with her personality, a snowflake. Although her hairpin may have biased my description of her. Speaking of which her hairpin looks strangely familiar…

"I'm Riku. A pleasure to meet you two."

"Hey do you all want to team up for the exam?" suggested Hanami.

Hmm that seems like a worthwhile proposition. Out of the two thousand participants here, only the top five hundred will make it. So they're practically encouraging teaming up. Makes sense considering most Sliders always travel in at least groups of two. It would seem both Solipse and I were about to agree when…

"Not so fast!" said a glasses wearing boy who seemed to be the leader of his group as he stepped towards us.

"The Snow Princess shouldn't be in a team with amateurs like you! She should join us instead!" arrogantly declared the leader of the group.

"Wait…You're North's daughter?" I asked in surprise.

"Um yes…but how do you all know that?" curiously plied Solipse.

As for me I found out from North herself. She came over to Kanata's for dinner before Kanata left for an important mission. North was gushing over the fact that Solipse celebrated her birthday that day, calling Solipse her little Snow Princess. For a gift I synthesized a diamond hairclip in the shape of a snowflake. Oh that's why it seemed so familiar. I gave myself a mental facepalm for not remembering that earlier. I proceeded to retell this story to Solipse. When she found out I was the one who gave her the hairclip for her birthday she blushed red, cutely contrasting with her pale skin. The group that approached us began to get frustrated.

No surprise that a moment later their leader yelled out "You dare to make such inappropriate advances towards such an innocent girl?"

"Coming from the ones trying to harass her…" I quietly muttered. These guys are starting to annoy me. I gave her that hairclip just because it was her birthday and I felt like leaving a good impression. Apparently my idea of 'good' has been misconstrued by both parties involved. Still avoiding Solipse's question I asked back "You know you still haven't told us how you know Solipse…"

All the members of the group pulled out various photos of Solipse. Much to her dismay all of them were extremely embarrassing. The most embarrassing was the leader's photo of Solipse wearing rather embarrassing pajamas. "We are the Snow Princess Club! We take it upon ourselves to spread the cute awesomeness that is Solipse!" he proudly declared.

When Solipse saw the photos (particularly the pajama one) she turned completely red in embarrassment. Unable to keep it in she cried out "Wahh~!" as a massive gust of cold wind blew some nearby unfortunates flying. Hanami barely dodged it while I took the full force of it. Surprisingly enough it just felt like a small breeze to me and I was still quite warm. My Hellfire passively at work no doubt. I then suddenly found myself uncontrollably laughing at their hypocrisy. "Me giving her a nice gift is inappropriate compared to keeping near pedo photos of her?" I exclaimed in between fits of laughter. I soon regained my composure as Hanami retorted "Sorry you perverts, but Solipse will be on our team."

"Oh we don't think so…" threatened the leader as their whole group closed in on Solipse.

Hanami and I were on the same page as she blasted away one member with a stream of fire from her hat. I 'unsheathed' one of my Hand Sonics and loaded a pair of cartridges into it. The already intimidating looking crimson blade upped its intimidation factor when Hellfire engulfed the blade edge. The rest of the group backed off as the member who was struck came back and joined them.

"Stop at once!" cried out someone from the crowd. Moments later a young man stood between us and the fan club.

"Trying to be a hero again, Thales?" joked Hanami.

"No, not this time. Just trying to minimize casualties, especially with Riku around. That's all" he replied smiling as he said so.

Silence filled the room. I could hear the hushed murmurings of the many people around. Apparently rumours about my recommendation exam have spread far without me noticing. Even the fan club seemed somewhat unnerved at who was opposing them now. Though unnerved they still had it in them to keep it up.

"We won't let our innocent Solipse join a bloodthirsty, battle loving maniac like you, Angel of Slaughter!" their leader tried to heroically proclaim. Who said I was bloodthirsty and loved fighting? Considering how I actually take the time to try to solve problems peacefully before fighting would make me the opposite. And wait…how'd you bumbling fools even know I'm also called the Angel of Slaughter? "We shall reclaim our Snow Princess from you defiler!"

"Guess there's no avoiding this…Well don't say I didn't warn you…" said Thales as he sighed in resignation. He pulled out a claymore, preparing to defend Solipse from the fan club.

"Dumbass…Think I'll let you take all the fun?" cried out Hanami as her hat spun even faster, sending sparks and embers flying all over the place.

"You know I'm actually quite a nice guy. Thanks to you pedo morons over two thousand people think I'm an Ax Crazy pervert!" I angrily yelled out to them. I activated Ange, more flames than usual accompanying the transition probably due to my anger. I flared my wings and used Blaze Slide as I hovered off the floor. Solipse looked unsure whether she should help or not. Finally she resolved to help us out and summoned her Icicle Staff.

Just before an all out brawl broke out between our two groups Rewrite appeared creating a gust of wind blowing away even more unfortunates. Man I actually feel bad for those people that have been blown away…

"Calm down. Since it'd be a hassle to haul you guys out in body bags let me show you how we handle duels here in Fantasia Slider Academy" Rewrite calmly said as she looked at Solipse's fan club. She then pulled out a deck of cards.

"These are World Cards. When initiating a duel you must activate these cards and fight according to their rules" she explained.

"All duels are by default one on one, best of three rounds unless the duelists say otherwise. Since Solipse's group is being challenged they get first draw."

Hanami was the first up. Rewrite gave her the deck and she looked through it. Without even looking through the rest of the deck she immediately chose one of the cards.

"I choose World Card Touhou" she said grinning frighteningly at one of the fan club members.

"And you're opponent?" asked Rewrite.

Hanami pointed towards a member wielding an assault rifle. Ange told me that the boy possessed no magical power whatsoever. The room dissolved away and was replaced by a Japanese shrine. I was surprised to see Hanami floating while the gun wielding member remained grounded. I asked Ange if Hanami possessed flight or levitation powers. She said no and in a moment I'd realize just how one-sided this battle was gonna be.

"Ah a good choice Hanami" complimented Rewrite. She went on to explain that duels in the World of Touhou were more or less resolved by aerial magical duels. Since only magic wielders can fly here the unfortunate muggle remained earthbound. "Alright then, BEGIN!"

It was quite a pathetic sight really. Free to fly around Hanami simply bombarded the moron to oblivion. Since he possessed only average athletic skill he couldn't even do a half decent job evading. Within a few minutes he was reduced to nothing more than singed clothing and nonexistent pride. Hanami was hilarious as she flew around cackling like a witch celebrating her victory.

"Next?" said a smiling Rewrite.

"Worry not fellow brother! I shall avenge thee! I shan't use underhanded tactics like you witch! As for my foe I chose the claymore wielding barbarian!" proclaimed one of the members as he stepped forward. Thales stepped forward as well. The boy unsheathed a rapier as Rewrite allowed him to choose a World Card.

"World Card Shakugan no Shana huh? So it all comes down to skill rather than abilities."

Like before the room dissolved away and we found ourselves within the familiar (at least to me) Fuzetsu. As soon as Rewrite began the match the rapier wielding member began to run around Thales, a short trail of afterimages appearing behind him.

"Come cumbersome brute! How will you beat me if you cannot hit me?" the boy mocked.

Thales let out a sigh. In a crowning moment of awesome he hit the boy in the back with his claymore sending him flying into a nearby wall. Within a second he was already where the boy was at and proceeded to send him skyward with an uppercut. Jumping up to where he was, he sent him back to earth with a mighty downward slash. The Fuzetsu turned back into the lobby as Thales put his claymore on his shoulder, RPG style.

"One should not be so boastful," scolded Thales, "especially if you're basing your judgement solely on appearances."

The sole remaining member, aside from the leader, dragged his comrade back among their ranks. With only one final duel left it would be either Solipse or I fighting.

"Solipse if you want to show these guys their place don't hesitate" I reassured her. Sure enough Solipse stepped up for the next fight.

"I never thought that I would have to hurt our precious Snow Princess…But be warned. I won't go easy on you simply because you're our idol. If you need proof that we're worthy enough to join then I shall show you" said the club's leader.

"Pick a good World Card and show this guy your stuff, Solipse!" encouraged Rewrite. She took the deck from Rewrite and picked a specific World Card.

"World of To Aru Majustsu no Index? Solipse are you sure? Your magic will be much hard-" Rewrite managed to say before she was cut off by a rather angry Solipse.

The room dissolved again and was replaced by a city set in the near future. Their leader was in the process of putting on an Object that looked like a pair of brass knuckles when Solipse ploughed right into him. And the wall behind him. And another…and well I think one gets the idea. Several crashes later she seemed bored ploughing him through walls and promoted him to improvised bludgeoning tool. She demolished everything around her in…an embarrassment fueled rage? That's definitely a first for me.

A few minutes later (after leaving their leader bloodied and bruised beyond imagining) the setting turned back into the lobby. I think everyone but I seemed to be shocked at how Solipse, with a childlike body, managed to overpower someone who looked physically superior to her. I mean she's North's daughter. What was everyone expecting? The stereotypical Glass Cannon mage just cause she looks like a fragile little girl?

I simply told her "That…was freaking awesome, Solipse."

"Um…thank you, Riku-kun…" she shyly answered back.

"Well that concludes the pre-exam entertainment…" concluded a shocked Rewrite.


	16. Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Race

"May I have your attention please!" called out a booming voice.

A woman wearing a witch's outfit (I think?) appeared before us. Her outfit was the same shade of pink as her hair as her blue eyes lazily looked over everyone. Despite her lax attitude she easily commanded everyone's attention with her voice. Or maybe it's the scythe. Personally I'd rather go with the latter considering that, if memory serves me correctly, she's _much_ stronger than Kanata.

"Since Headmaster Izumi cannot be with us today I, Commander Kelowna, will be the exam proctor. I'd like to keep this brief so I'd appreciate if you all pay attention the first time around."

She explained that the exam was based on the story of the Chinese Zodiac. All of us would be scattered throughout a world of her choosing. Our goal is to reach a chosen destination. We can choose whatever route we want to get to the destination. The faster one gets there, the better. However to make it fair for everyone she put additional rules in place:

1) No teleporting or any other means to travel instantaneously from place to place

2) All participants will be placed an equal distance from the goal

3) Flight and levitation is not allowed

I was a bit disappointed with the last rule. I turned my wings back into Cloak form and disengaged Blaze Slide. Well that's fine I can still run fast, _very_ fast. However I was curious as to how fast Hanami and Solipse could run. While I'm at it I should ask Ange if she's got a GPS feature. Although how she'd have a GPS feature without accompanying satellites is beyond me.

"So Hanami, Solipse…how fast can you run exactly?" I asked.

Laughing she replied "I think I answer for the both of us when I say not as fast as Thales or you!" Solipse nodded in agreement.

"Well this quite the dilemma. We seem to have quite a gap between speeds in our team. Does anyone have any ideas as to how we can solve it?" Thales inquired.

Before I could voice my opinion (hesitantly might I add considering how it might sound…) Hanami jumped onto Thales back. "Give us a piggyback ride of course!" she excitedly responded.

Seeing as how those two seemed to have decided to be piggyback partners I looked over to Solipse. I don't blame her for blushing considering how she misconstrued my gift as a romantic advance earlier. Although we have a slight glitch with the piggyback plan: Solipse is considerably smaller than me. Knowing that North may very well appear and kick my ass, I picked her up off her feet and held her in my arms. I saw her fan club give me death glares as well as groups of girls giggling here and there. Before I embarrassed her further I was about to explain to her why I did that when she shyly responded "It's ok, I understand…" Now don't get me wrong I don't have a loli fetish but damn Solipse looks so cute when she blushes!

I saw Kelowna's lazy gaze drift to us, changing to one of wariness. Solipse waved to her to say she was ok while Hanami simply gave her a thumbs up. Wonder what that was about? Anyway shortly afterwards Kelowna brought up a map of the world where the exam would be taking place. The area where the race would take place was a bit of an environmental oddity. Within its unnaturally perfect circular area were zones where the climate ranged drastically. Where there was a desert, a frozen wasteland lay beside it. Ange told me that she had made a copy of the map for navigation purposes. After explaining where the destination was (at the centre of course) she bid everyone good luck and proceeded to transport everyone there.

After being transported we found ourselves at the outer edges of a prairie zone. Loading up each of my gauntlets with a pair of cartridges each I followed after Thales. The relatively level and unobstructed plains made it easy for us to keep moving at high speeds. As we ran along I told everyone our route. It was just a simple straight line from start to finish. We had quite a few zones to cover including plains, rainforests, rivers, caves and so on. After a few minutes we found ourselves approaching the next zone, a rainforest.

"Riku we'll have to slow down!" Thales warned me as we got closer.

According to the map we'd only be passing through a small stretch of it. However small though it may be it was still too dense for us to just run through. That and carrying the girls made it difficult for any of us to use our powers to clear it as we're running. With no choice but to stop I suggested a way to clear a path through. I asked Thales to let me stand on his claymore then boost me up into the air while I jump simultaneously. Since Thales was the only member of our team who knows some of my abilities he gave me a smile as he sent me skyward. At the peak of my jump I fired off my full payload of Hell Hunt clearing all but a small portion of the path. After loading more cartridges we continued to run through the path I made. As we approached the small section that I hadn't cleared Solipse built us a ramp from ice allowing us to bypass the last section by pretty much jumping over it. I laughed at Hanami as she gave Thales an extra boost by using her hat like a rocket booster, much to his dismay.

The next zone had us facing a rather wide, raging river. Solipse said that she could make us an ice bridge but that'd only last a few moments as the strong current would break it apart. As soon as she built the bridge we tried to cover as much of it as we could before it started breaking apart. However we were only halfway through before it broke apart. We were left leaping from broken section to broken section in order to cross over to the other side.

The sparse woodlands after the river gave way to a series of caves frozen in ice. With Ange's help we managed to avoid getting lost in the maze of caves. Just as it seemed as though we were about to get out a wall of solid ice blocked the exit. Hanami got off her trusty steed Thales and started to weaken the wall with a stream of flames and fireballs. However despite her efforts it only thinned it out halfway, the rest being covered by a myriad of cracks. In another display of sheer brute force Solipse, armed with a war hammer made of her magical ice, shattered the wall with a devastating smash. Picking them up, we continued to the next zone.

The final zone before reaching our destination left us with a rather easy cliff side path to navigate. We continued along at a brisk pace wary of the rather long fall should we accidently run off the edge. Just as we thought it'd be an easy final run to the finish line Solipse's fan club blocked the way.

"You think we'll let you go for embarrassing us in front of Solipse like that?" barked their leader.

"Guh, we don't have time for this…" I muttered. I used Blitz to cover the distance between us and they near-instantaneously. Slipping in between the centre of their formation I fired off a pair of Hell Hunt on either side of me. The ensuing twin pair of explosions left two of the members' unconscious as they were slumped against the cliff face. The leader and the other member were knocked off the side where they were both teleported away by Kelowna (probably…). Tsk…and they called us amateurs. With no more obstacles in our way we ran as fast as we could to the final destination.

"Hmm you're the first ones to make it here. No surprise considering your performances with your recommendation exam" commented Kelowna.

"Oh and in hindsight I probably should've added 'Engaging other participants is forbidden' considering that little pre-exam show you four gave everyone" she added. With many of the participants still at the halfway point Kelowna invited us to have tea with her.

"Have we met each other sometime in the past, Riku?" asked Kelowna suddenly.

"I don't believe so. Why?" I asked her back. If this is what I think this is, then I might just get another clue about Friedrich.

"A while back there were rumours going around between Sliders of a second Shinigami. As you already know there can only be one Shinigami. I made it a point to investigate the source of these rumours; the one Sliders dubbed the White Reaper. After a few false reports I finally found myself face to face with this mysterious slider. Sure enough as his title implied he was dressed almost completely in white. Add to that his pale complexion and silver hair and he definitely gave off a rather foreboding feeling, as though he were a ghost."

"At first I was wondering where his scythe was. All I saw was a rosary wrapped around his wrist. That was when I realized what it actually was. Unfortunately by then he had already released its true form. It looked like a large teal and white crucifix at first. The blade was made from white flames. As you can guess I pulled out Sagaris and fought him. Much to my chagrin he's one of the few people to this day to have beaten me. But I have to say he was quite a good sport about it. He even helped me up and healed me afterwards. He pulled off his hood before he left and said his name was Friedrich Sankt Germain. I thought you might've been him considering your performance so far. Guess I was wrong~!"

The White Reaper huh…At least now I'll know if I run into him. To think he beat Kelowna. But I wonder if she really was trying. Well it doesn't really matter. I think it'd be best if I try to avoid fighting him. Finally one more clue that I can use to find him.

* * *

Luci, Eva and Friedrich were eating dinner when all of a sudden Friedrich sneezed. A few seconds later he started laughing.

"What's wrong?" asked Eva.

"In anime, characters always sneeze whenever someone is talking about them behind their back. Guess there must be somebody else besides Riku talking about me!" he replied after he finished laughing.

"Any idea who it might be?" asked Luci.

"Oh I have a pretty good idea…To think I helped her out too!" he said, resuming his laughter.

"Well…what now?" Kelowna awkwardly asked.

"Does this mean we have to do something for each person…?" inquired a disappointed Rewrite.

"I don't think any of us thought that 1) they'd be in a team together and 2) they'd arrive at the destination _at the same time_. How about we just call the bet off?" suggested North.

"Aww weak, North…But fine…" Rewrite replied.


	17. Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Burnout

I can't believe that my first year here at Fantasia has almost come to a close. Speaking of which I should call Nanoha and tell her I'll be spending my break over at her place again. Come to think of it I've been spending almost all my time off of school there. Probably enough to warrant Vivio referring to me as her onii-chan. Maybe I should take Solipse with me again…she really enjoyed it there last time. I should also clear up the misunderstanding from last time too… Well I should probably find Solipse and the others so we can study for our final exam.

"Riku, Kanata wanted you to come to her office. Everyone else is there waiting for us" said Solipse, relaying Kanata's message.

Entering her office I saw Kanata and the others in front of her desk. I'm surprised Kanata is here. I thought she had some top-secret, important mission to do for the DSO. If she's here then this must be important.

"All of you possess the best test scores and simulation performances in the school. The DSO believes that a real mission might be a better exam for you. It will also serve as a means to see how well you can all operate as a team in the field" Kanata begun.

"Your mission is to escort an operative back to DSO HQ. If his report is correct he is being followed by Alice Pendragon. The DSO wants her brought in for questioning related to a hacking incident during a recommendation exam" explained Kanata as she looked over to Jon and I.

Suffice it to say everyone excitedly agreed, even Jon. I suppose this beats lectures. Knowing what I do about Alice I'm, on the other hand, not so excited. Even if she caused the Spearhead Massacre without knowing it, she still possesses more power than probably even I have. Kanata then proceeded to tell everyone to get ready for their first official mission. Before I could leave, she pulled me back in and shut the door behind her.

"Riku, I'm sorry" she apologized.

"What for? Wait did you not issue this mission?" I asked realizing what she was scared of.

"No. It was an order from a group of Vice-Commanders. I might outrank them but they have me beat when it comes to majority vote. I don't have all the proof I need yet but I'm positive that they are the ones' that issued Operation Speahead. There might even be the possibility that they are agents Serenity ordered to infiltrate the DSO. Please…do what you can to keep your friends safe…" she finished.

"I understand. No matter what happens, don't let it slow down your investigation. If they're the ones responsible for that massacre I'd gladly sacrifice my life to prevent something like that from happening again," I replied "but I'll do my best to come back alive. If I've learned anything, it's a pain for you to find and train a new apprentice."

With that I left her office and joined up with the others. Being given a dossier for the mission we relegated roles for each of our members. Solipse, Hanami and Jon would act as the recovery and security team. As for Thales and me, we decided to act as scouts watching the situation unfold from the rooftop. I also told the others to especially keep their eye out for Alice. With a plan in place we slid over to where the Agent was.

"Good afternoon Agent Nathaniel. We're Initiates Solipse, Hanami and Jonathan. We've been tasked with guaranteeing your safe return to DSO HQ" Solipse professionally explained.

"Gods what's Command thinking sending Initiates for this kind of mission? Don't you have any idea who Alice Pendragon is?" Nathaniel said voicing his concern.

"Yes. She's wanted by Command for questioning about suspicious hacking of their network. Why, is there something they failed to include in the dossier?" Solipse replied, unnerved. I guess the last year has taught Solipse how to keep her cool, mind the pun.

"Guess you kids don't know about the Spearhead Massacre after all… Well let's just get out of here as fast as we can. I assume you've arranged for transportation?" asked Nathaniel. Solipse nodded at Jon who then proceeded to retrieve a car we had hidden earlier. Driving it back to the plaza, the others got in as well and started to drive off.

"We got trouble" said Thales over the communicator. Sure enough I saw the problem. Hidden by a large umbrella we didn't see her waiting at an adjacent outdoor café. As soon as the others drove off she got up, disappeared for a moment then reappeared on a nearby rooftop giving chase. Likewise we too went after her.

For now it seems the others are in the clear as long as they keep moving. However as we saw them approaching a light turning red, I could hear Jon cursing. Thales and I moved in place to intercept Alice. Oddly she stopped and waited for them to keep moving. If my guess was right and she was working for Serenity why didn't she attack them? Does she still abide by a code of honour or something? A tense few seconds later the light once again turned green and we all continued as before.

After a while we reached a fairly desolate area on the city's outskirts. Alice quickly came in for the attack before the others got out of the car. Fortunately Thales managed to intercept her.

"Good afternoon to you too, Miss Pendragon," greeted Thales as he struggled to keep Alice back, "Unfortunately my associates are in a bit of a hurry so I cannot let you interrupt them."

"I hope you kill that monster for what she did to my little brother, Jenkins!" Nathaniel angrily yelled out before the others dragged him off to slide away.

"Thales I don't think you have any idea who you're up against. I suggest you slide out as well" I suggested.

"Agent Nathaniel isn't the only one who lost a relative in the Spearhead Massacre. If I leave can I trust you to ask her about it?" he asked. I nodded. Before he slid out he said to her "Despite what you did, I do not hold any ill will towards you. Just as I have forgiven you long ago, I hope you can forgive yourself if that massacre was not, as I'm told, of your conscious doing. Goodbye then."

"He's the first person to have ever forgiven me. I'm glad that there are still people who can break the cycle of revenge" she contently commented. "I never meant any harm to your comrades. You, however, are a different story. Serenity has asked me to terminate you believing that your existence is a threat to all," she explained to me, "Nevertheless I still wholeheartedly believe that despite what she says you should live."

"Have you ever doubted Serenity's orders even once?" I asked her back.

"Of course. Some of her previous orders have been questionable to say the least. But it must be done for the greater good. I still do not understand why you are such a threat though. From what an informant working for Serenity has told me you've been nothing short of an excellent friend to your group and others. It really does pain me to terminate you."

"Armor Shift; Avalon Mail" she said as a magic circle appeared beneath her feet. A few seconds later a massive pillar of golden light erupted forth from it. When the light dissipated she stood before me donning a full suit of shining white and blue plate mail. She drew her sword from its sheath. If what Kanata has told me before was true it's her sheath, the legendary World Object Avalon, and not her other Object, Excalibur, which would be the greatest threat to me. I activated my Barrier Jacket and unsheathed both Hand Sonics. After loading both up to the maximum safe limit, that being eight cartridges each, the two of us charged towards each other.

I dealt the first blow striking with both blades, emptying all of the extra firepower onto her barrier. I was surprised as it collapsed easily. I thought Avalon's barrier was supposed to be impenetrable…

"You destroyed my Avalon Mail's barrier, impressive. However breaking through Avalon's barrier is impossible. Surrender now and I shall bring you a quick and merciful death…" quietly offered Alice.

I laughed at her as I tackled her down, knocking her helmet off. "Like hell I'd give up that easily, you smug bit-" I started but stopped. I saw the look on her face, which genuinely showed she did not want to cause me any more suffering than she needed to. I rephrased my response to acknowledge this, saying instead "Sorry but I'll have to respectfully decline. You've grown so dependant on Serenity that you won't even act on your own feelings. I guess I'll just have to 'befriend' you."

She looked at me confused as to what I meant by 'befriend'. If I read those reports back on Midchilda properly nearly everyone Nanoha has beaten has become her friend. Even Vivio is no exception to this. I'm hoping that in my case an unusually familiar (at least to me) saying 'Defeat Means Friendship' works. I backed off as she got back on her feet. "Golden Slaughter!" she cried as a wave of golden light nearly vaporized me along with the nearby surroundings. I loaded the max number of cartridges into each on my gauntlets as I charged in for another attack. As my blades hit her barrier even I was horrified that it did _nothing_. I backed off again to load more cartridges in. "Riku slide out…_now_," suggested a frightened Ange, "you can't safely gather enough power to break through." "I'll have to respectfully decline you too. Kanata's and Thales' requests aside I won't let her remain a slave to Serenity. At the very least I'll make sure she doubts her enough to act of her own free will" I said smiling.

"How about we make a wager then," she suggested, "Break through my barrier and I'll listen to whatever you have to say. Do not be mistaken though, I will still try to eliminate you until then." Fine if I can't safely gather enough power to break through it then I'll just have to forego my safety. Sorry for breaking my promise to you Nanoha. I charged and thrust both my blades at her barrier. "Riku, what're you doing? Stop!" pled Ange as I loaded cartridge after cartridge. I could hear her alarms blaring as I exceeded the maximum safe limit. I overrode her attempts to try and vent all the excess Hellfire. As soon as Alice could grasp what was happening she too pled for me to stop claiming she would consider my death as dishonourable. I continued to ignore both of them. All I could do was keep loading cartridges until her barrier breaks. After hundreds of cartridges her barrier finally started breaking.

"Ange, give me the maximum boost you can give me for Overdrive!" I ordered her.

Reluctantly she agreed and responded with one of her automated messages "Overdrive online; Operating at 500%." I watched as the Hellfire from my blades poured into the cracks in her barrier, further consuming it and leading to even more cracks. With a shocked look on her face, Alice watched as her supposedly impenetrable barrier shattered into countless golden shards…mixed with shining crimson shards? Wait…those are my blades. Just like my fight with Fate I found myself collapsing to the ground. What started out as uncomfortable warmth quickly turned to unbelievably excruciating pain. I watched in horror as my whole right arm was completely engulfed in Hellfire. I couldn't suppress the pain any longer and even with Overdrive, Regeneration was useless. It was just natural instinct as I started crying and screaming in pain. Just before I passed out I felt Alice…hug me?

"Miss Ange, please render me your assistance. I believe there may be something I can do to help…" Alice said as I lost consciousness.

* * *

"Man…how many of his cartridges did he use?" asked a curious Hanami.

"666 cartridges were used in total. Multiply the compiling exponential boost and even Alice was surprised it broke through something like Avalon's barrier" replied Ange.

Solipse let out a giggle. Everyone looked at her, somewhat unnerved. She explained "Riku always hated how, even if he doesn't mean to, he always makes it seem to everyone that he's evil incarnate."

She looked at Alice who ended up falling asleep beside Riku. Solipse was glad that she could convince her mother and other high ranking DSO members to delay taking Alice into custody. The others seemed to look with curiosity at Riku's new right arm. Working together, Alice and Ange managed to convert all of the excess Hellfire into a material that acts like a massive storage vessel for magic. With it under control they could safely discharge the remaining mana. However it left him with an arm that looked like it was made from black mercury. Unable to restrain herself, Solipse poked his arm. Much to her surprise it felt just like a normal human arm.

"Anyhow we should let them both rest. They've both exhausted quite a bit of energy" said Solipse as she wrapped a blanket around Alice. Following her advice everyone left his hospital room with her being the last to leave.

"Sweet dreams…"


	18. Chapter 17

Chapter 17: Cantarella

I'm sure the others in this masquerade ball can't see me trembling right now. I looked around the room at all the smiling faces. Every so often I could see the Vice-Commanders watching my actions. Those sick bastards…they know how I feel about Alice so they purposely gave me the order to assassinate her! Usually everyone looks to me for help. But now it would seem I'm the one in distress. Until the Slider Council gets the full report on the corruption among the Vice-Commanders I can't disobey orders or else Alice will be killed. However if I carry out my orders she'll die anyway and at my hands no less! In my mind I couldn't help but scream for someone to help.

The band started playing a familiar tune. It seems like something that the other 'me' listened to. As I wound my way through the crowd I finally found Alice. She looks amazing…her eyes, her clothes…everything. Why does it have to be this way? It was strange but after a while, even though no one was singing, I swear I was hearing someone singing along with the music…

_You stare right at me, I stare right at you_

_As our worlds are locked in us two_

"Riku, I'm glad they let you see me!" greeted Alice. The two of us began to dance along with everyone else. Right now, being here with her, just made it feel like it was only us two. I just want this feeling to last forever.

_We act oblivious, we feign but it's a fact_

_We're intoxicated by our pact_

"Like I promised I listened to what you had to say. After thinking about it you were right, Serenity was just stringing me along. After our meeting tonight I will no longer answer to her. Can I trust you to be by my side? It just feels like I have nobody else to trust in right now aside from you" she said as we danced along. I promised to help her through all this. There's got to be someway to save her from her inevitable fate.

_As time passes by, my heart heaves a sigh  
I know I must__ hide it from your eyes  
As I breath I feel it again  
Is it me or am I insane?_

The hands on the clock moved ever closer to her execution should I refuse to do as I had been ordered. She looked up at me right into my eyes, smiling that beautiful smile of hers. Right now she's probably the happiest she's been in a long time. I did my best to hide the truth from her. If she dies tonight at least I want her happy. No! I can't have those kinds of thoughts. Until it happens I have to keep trying to find a way to save her.

_I will l__ove you as long as I'm able to  
As I plan to foil the trap for you  
Before I could only deeply care for you in my mind  
But now, I no longer need to keep it confined_

"Alice I want to say something to you…" I said.

"What is it?" she asked, her smile still lingering.

"I won't blame you if you try to run," I started to explain, "I didn't come here of my own will. Or rather I wished I could. I've been ordered to kill you. However I decided to disobey my orders. Unfortunately you only have until midnight before another team executes you. I'm sorry-"

She put her finger on my mouth. "I know you're trying your best to stop this. And you're not alone either. I'll help find a way out of this too. Don't shoulder the burden all on your own" she kindly said. She said she wanted some time by herself for a little while. I agreed and let her go off on her own, hoping that the treacherous Vice-Commanders wouldn't try to hurt her.

Just as I was about to go sit with her, a stranger grabbed my hand. "Sol-!" I managed to exclaim before she put her hand over my mouth, giving me the universal sign requesting silence. She looked like a white clad Zorro. I couldn't help but snicker at how irresistibly cute she looked trying to cover my mouth considering how much shorter she is compared to me. "You owe Hanami and Thales for this~" she said. She asked for the two of us to keep dancing so we wouldn't incur the suspicion of the Vice-Commanders. As we danced along she explained her plan. Hanami concocted a drug known as Cantarella. It's a heavy sedative that mimics what people consider physical death. By giving it to Alice, she would appear dead when in fact she's actually alive. She told me to slip it into her drink. So that it wouldn't be suspicious its effect would slowly take hold, rather than be instantaneous. After she explained this to me, we parted ways. When Alice rejoined me we danced around in a circling motion. I saw Solipse out on the balcony as we spun around and by the time I could see the balcony again all that was left was a small gust of snow drifting in the evening breeze.

We danced for a little while longer before I lied and said I was thirsty. As we sat down I brushed some of her hair aside and 'accidently' knocked her mask off. As she bent over to retrieve it I slipped the Cantarella into her drink. As she put her mask back on she playfully scolded me for being such a klutz. We agreed to toast to our belief that we could foil the trap laid out for her. Just as Solipse said it didn't knock her out right away. We continued to happily dance along as I continued to listen to the song hidden in the music…__

Everything is alright now, my plan is in motion  
We've won, just let it take hold my dear  
There's something you should know, about the drink you drank  
Just swallow and let it all unfold

Rusting from time, the chains break away  
No need to run, you've already bested them  
As you tire, the seconds go by  
Echoing the seconds awry

Let's look forward to the future that lies before us  
Hidden, beyond the horizon  
Linked by your sweet smile that goes to me by itself  
It seems, like I won't break our ties

I will love you as long as I'm able to  
As we, walk forth into the future  
Before I could only deeply care for you in my mind  
I hear, "You know I am yours"

When I look in your eyes I know I see myself  
Together, with you in the future  
Linked by the sweet smile that is yours and yours alone  
I say, "That I just love you so"

I clasped her face in my hands as I kissed her. She returned the sentiment in kind, holding me in a warm embrace. Now _this_ I want to last forever. I'm sure she too feels like it's only us two out here on the balcony, the cool night breeze wrapping around us. However the Cantarella had already begun to take effect. I felt her embrace slowly slip away. I held her in my arms as her legs began to give way as well.

"You'll be alright…" I whispered to her. She gave me one more beautiful smile before the Cantarella took full effect, making it seem like she died. The echoing ring of the clock as it struck 12'oclock brought the Vice-Commanders to us like vultures to fresh carrion. I prepared my plan to deceive them.

"Is the girl dead?" one of them asked, not a shred of mercy in his tone.

"I did what you wanted me to, you damn bastards…at least let me be with her now!" I pretended to cry out with all the false sadness I could muster.

"Silence, you emotional fool! You'll draw unnecessary attention to us. Do what you want. Her usefulness has come to an end for everyone involved."

I carried her 'lifeless' body as I dropped down from the balcony. I took her to the garden, well enough away from the main building that the Vice-Commanders would not be able to witness her 'resurrection'. I laid her down on a bench and I sat beside her as I waited for the drug to wear off.

It felt like an eternity waiting for the four hours to pass before she regained consciousness. "Was what you said before just part of your act…?" she asked, a tense cautiousness subtly hidden in her voice. I kissed her once more and said "I meant every word I said. I'll love you as long as I'm able to." She sat up slowly, still feeling a bit light headed. As she tried to get up on her feet, I held her hands in mine. She gave me another of her gentle, beautiful smiles; something that I doubt I'll ever tire of.

However our joy was short lived. I watched in horror as her face switched from a look of bliss to one of pain, physical pain. A patch of red slowly dripped down her dress, collecting as a crimson pool at her feet. I looked on as Serenity appeared behind her.

"My…I seem to have a bad habit of being betrayed," she nonchalantly commented, "but at least this time I can exact my punishment on the traitor."

Just as I was about to charge at Serenity, a gunshot echoed in the dark. I dropped onto my knees, my damaged knee remaining injured because they prevented me from using Ange during this mission. Turning around I saw the one who shot me: Jon, his M6D pistol still smoking at the barrel.

"You promised to give me a World Object if I could secure Riku for you," he said, "So here he is. I'd like my reward now."

As Alice passed out from the pain, Serenity pulled out her pistol. Thinking that she would kill me, I looked at Alice while I mouthed the words "I love you". As the shot echoed in the darkness of the early morning I was surprised that the target was Jon, a single gunshot wound right in between his eyes; a perfect headshot.

"Well since you haven't passed out yet why don't I share something with you. I _despise_ working with others! However I'm sensible enough to admit that I'm not that strong. So until I can achieve my goal I'll have to rely on useless grunts like this" she said as she pointed to Alice and Jon. "Well your allies will arrive shortly, so I won't be able to finish you off. But just to add insult to injury, I'll take your pretty little girlfriend with me. She still has something I would like to get my hands on" she said as she slid away with Alice in tow. I tried to reach out to Alice but I couldn't reach her in time.

Just as Serenity slid away, Solipse and the others appeared. They rushed to my aid but they were too late to save Alice and Jon. Unfortunately, I too would pass out from the blood loss.

"You're the Agent that Commander Kanata instructed to uncover the DSO corruption, correct?" asked Friedrich.

"Of course. Izumi-san trusts Fuuko. Fuuko may not be as good as Izumi-san but Fuuko is reliable!" she replied, oddly enough in the third person. Maybe, Friedrich thought, it's because she's a Half-Spirit like him.

"Commander Kanata has an apprentice named Riku Furude. Can you please give this directly to him? Tell him if he truly loves her, use the information inside this dossier to save her" Friedrich instructed.

"Fuuko is really curious to know who you are" she said.

"The infamous White Reaper. Send my regards to Commander Kelowna!"

(Author's Notes: Though modified the original lyrics I used were courtesy of xzerulz91)


	19. Chapter 18

Chapter 18: Jail Break

"You should take this. You'll need it considering you can't use your swords" said Kanata as she handed me Jon's Object, Unlimited Firearms.

I put the ring-like object on my finger. I'm sure with some tinkering around I can find guns that are compatible with the Cartridge System. Donning my Barrier Jacket, I prepared for what may possibly be a suicide mission.

"As your Maestro I'm giving you this mission as a special request. You should know that the Commanders and the Council don't exactly think this is a good idea. But I know that you care for her. Though the odds are against you, I believe that you'll be able to beat them; for her sake" explained Kanata.

Before I slid away Kanata added "You won't be alone by the way. Kelowna says that there would be an 'elite' team assisting you. I'm not sure what she meant by that though…"

I kept that in mind. I wonder who they might be though. If the Commanders and the Council is against it then it can't be someone from the DSO. So they must not be Sliders. Well I guess it doesn't really matter. If Kelowna says they're 'elite' then that must mean something. Only way to find out for sure is to slide there.

"So we finally meet, Riku" greeted Friedrich.

Well Serenity wasn't kidding when she said we look just like each other. And he's not alone either. Luci is here with him. There was also another girl with them. She looked me over carefully.

"You sure this kid can help us? Quite frankly we'd be better off without him" said Eva.

"For our plan to work we need a fourth person to go down to the cells to rescue the target. I can't think of someone more fitting for the role" replied Luci.

After convincing Eva that I would not be a hindrance to them, Friedrich explained the plan. It would be in three phases: breach, suppress and retrieve. Eva would handle breaching the main entrance. Friedrich would suppress anyone in the courtyard as well as protect Eva after she breaches the main entrance. Luci was relegated with the task of keeping back anyone trying to get into the stairwell leading to the cells. It would be my job to clear out any remaining resistance holed up in the cells, retrieve Alice, rendezvous with everyone and finally slide out. A relatively easy plan to follow.

The others were getting ready for their assault as well. Friedrich was clad in his white and teal raiment, easily handling his scythe, Cruxis, with a single hand. Eva was now wearing a more form fitting pale violet witches outfit, in her hands her spellbook, Soluna's Grimoire. Luci was once again wielding her sinister looking spear, Longinus. I was surprised at the fact that other than the material (hers was made of a lustrous, pitch black metal); our armor looked exactly the same. Once we were finished we moved into position to start our assault.

"Sol Onslaught!" cried out Eva as a quartet of magic circles appeared in front of her. The three smaller circles rotated around the circumference of the larger one, drawing in energy of all forms. The guards, seeing this, fired a barrage of projectiles at her. I stepped in front of her, Distortion deflecting it all away. However I would soon learn why the other two were well behind her. Multiple alarms were blaring as the energy from my armor and weapons' system was being drained by Eva's spell. I was forced to move aside as all my systems needed to recharge.

"Thanks! Your magic really sped things up!" she said. Soon after she said this, her spell reached full charge. The ensuing beam directed all its stored energy towards the main entrance. The end result? No main entrance, just a massive gap. Friedrich was the first one in, carving a path through the unfortunate grunts that stood in his way. More joined in, trying to overpower him with their sheer number. They stood no chance as Friedrich swiftly moved through all of them; swinging his scythe at speeds even I would consider blinding. He and Eva stood between the enemy forces outside and the interior of the facility.

Luci and I made our way inside the facility. As expected even more of Serenity's grunts blocked our way inside. Luci charged through mercilessly. Every swing and thrust of her spear left blood splattering all over the place. By the time we reached the stairwell leading down to the cells everything, Luci included, was painted a sickening scarlet. As I started heading down I could hear more grunts coming for us.

"I'm not quite satisfied yet. Do take your time, Riku" she nonchalantly commented, her usually gentle comforting smile now unnerving me instead. She reminded me of a certain blue haired, stab-happy alien…

I wound my way down the lengthy stairwell. I stopped halfway realizing that I had gotten inside without having to draw a weapon. I called Friedrich over the communicators we were all using. I asked him what gun could I use that would be compatible with my Cartridge System.

"Well I can think of a few. Pretty much any energy based weapon would work. However you'd have to use Synthesis to make conduits linking the two together" he suggested.

"Well I was thinking of something compact, multiple firing modes and fairly accurate" I said to specify what kind of weapon I'd like.

"A Skorpion would have been ideal but that's a kinetic weapon. Try Zero's Buster Shot. It's the closest to what you have in mind. Also as an added benefit the cartridge the gun uses functions as a rather effective energy sword."

Friedrich began to explain the specifics. More than a few times I had to ask him to repeat certain parts because of all the explosions that Eva was causing outside. On the plus side it seems like this weapon isn't magic based so I should be able to summon it. After getting all the data I needed, I summoned it with Unlimited Firearms. One appeared in each hand. Guess I'm going guns akimbo. Friedrich wasn't kidding when he said it was compact though. It was similar in design to the M6D pistol Jon shot me with but much smaller. As I used Synthesis to add conduits connecting it to the Cartridge System I wondered if this little thing would be durable enough to handle Hellfire's mana output. Oh well, if the gun doesn't work I'm pretty sure the sword will.

When I finally got to the bottom of the stairwell I was surprised to find no guards patrolling. I carefully advanced through the hallway, heading to the only closed jail cell.

"Ange, is there anyone else here besides Alice and I?" I asked, wary that there might be ambushers in the empty cells.

"No, I'm not picking up anything…" she began but soon retracted her statement saying "Wait! There…five cells ahead to your right!"

"Hmm so you found me. So much for shooting you in the back of the head" mumbled someone as he stepped into the hallway.

"Do you know what I am?" he asked.

"You're a Doppelganger. What about it?" I said.

"Ah but you see, I'm different from the Doppelgangers you're used to. Rather than transforming into something you're afraid of, I copy you instead!"

"Wow so you play your title straight" I said sarcastically. Sadly he wasn't kidding. A brief flash of light later I found myself looking at…well I'm pretty sure he copied me but he looks more like Friedrich. Thankfully it seems he can't copy Ange or Unlimited Firearms.

"What the? Why aren't I wearing the same armor as you? And where are the guns you're supposed to be using?"

"Idiot…those aren't part of my power. Ange is an Intelligent Device and the guns are part of an Object" I replied. I believe the term 'epic fail' applies to the situation.

Though obviously enraged, I still had to be careful since he can still use Hellfire. Or so I thought. Just as he was about to throw a fireball at me, it exploded. This is too pathetic to laugh at. Although I wonder if he's doing this to try and purposely screw with me.

"What kind of useless power makes the user blow up?" he cried out in anger.

"Fireballs are the last thing you want to be using if you have no idea how to control Hellfire. You're just liable to get yourself killed that way" I said. It would seem he can't copy a person's mastery of their skills. Why would Serenity let an idiot like this join? I would've thought she'd have tighter recruitment standards.

"Fine if I'm gonna just keep blowing myself up…I'll just take you with me! MARTYRDOM!" he yelled out as he ran straight at me, a pair of fireballs in hand. Idiot…did you forget I have guns? Too bad unlike CoD4 I can't throw him somewhere else…or can I? As he charged I shot him in his knee and then while he was falling I kicked him right into Alice's cell door. I ducked into a nearby empty jail cell to avoid the ensuing explosion. Realizing he stood no chance, he promptly slid away yelling "I'll get you next time!" Well that's highly unlikely. Well at least he grasps how to use Regeneration properly.

I entered Alice's cell to find her in shackles. It would seem that her stab wound has healed at least. Unfortunately it would seem Serenity, or one of her henchmen (or henchwomen for that matter), did quite a number on her.

"Well that was quite the wake up call, Riku" joked Alice. Well, I can't blame her. I did just kick a live (wait did I just say a pun?) person into her cell door.

"What did they do to you?" I asked as I shot the shackles off.

"They tried torturing me into telling them how to transfer Avalon's ownership to Serenity. Fortunately I do not even know how I received it in the first place. And worry not, I am fine. I have taken much worse before" she replied. Hey wait, that's my line! "We should move quickly. I am sure more of Serenity's cannon fodder will come down here" suggested Alice. Quite frankly, between Eva, Friedrich and Luci, I doubt any of them are still capable of fighting or are even alive. Confirming my guess all three reported that they have taken out all willing combatants and the rest fled. In other words, we could literally waltz out of here if we wanted to. Or so I thought…

"Well I hope you all enjoyed the pre-fireworks entertainment! So let the show really begin!" boomed Serenity's voice over the facility's PA system.

"Riku, we'll be sliding out now. I suggest you do the same and fast" warned Friedrich before he and the others slid out. It would seem that we were not quite out of the woods yet as klaxons began to blare throughout the facility

"Self-destruct sequence has been activated. Ten seconds to detonation. Ten…" calmly counted a monotone voice.

Ten seconds? I quickly helped Alice to her feet, slinging her arm over my shoulders to help her stand. However this cost us too much time. By the time she was on her feet the timer was already on two. Both of us thought for sure that this would be the end. Out of nowhere I felt someone grab us both and helped us slide out. Just as I was pulled into the dimensional doorway I caught a glimpse of who helped us out. Her short brown hair went down to her shoulders and her light-brown eyes sparkled as if it contained the universe within. Her clothes were certainly unique, being a mix between a Western dress and a Japanese kimono. She reminded me of a certain someone…

* * *

"Hey! You two shouldn't be sleeping out here!" someone yelled out at us. I was unusually tired. I couldn't be bothered to wake up.

"Riku, are you alright?" asked Alice. I probably shouldn't ignore her. Actually come to think of it, isn't she injured?

I opened my eyes and found that we were on a bench in a park. From the looks of things it must be early evening. Fortunately she seemed devoid of injuries. Now my attention switched to the noisy girl in front us. She looked almost like the girl that saved us. But she gives off a different vibe. The girl from before seemed like someone who was content with what life gives her. This one seems more the type to find ways _not_ to make life normal so it can be exciting.

Putting her hands on her hips, chest out, she proudly proclaimed (at a volume that I'm sure some nearby could've heard this) "I am the Supreme Commander of the SOS Brigade, Haruhi Suzumiya!"


	20. Chapter 19

Chapter 18: The Arrival of Riku Furude

Haruhi's attention shifted to Alice who gave her a quizzical look. "Whoa, how'd you do that?" she excitedly asked (while yelling of course).

"How did I do what exactly?" she asked her back earnestly. I gave myself another one of my mental facepalms.

"You're speaking English but I can understand you perfectly" Haruhi replied.

"Though you are speaking Japanese I too can understand what you are saying. Is that odd?" questioned Alice.

"I can't believe I've finally found my first genuine mystery! Tell me, are you exchange students?" asked Haruhi.

"Yes," I lied, "but I forget the name of the high school we were supposed to go to. It's near here so I was wondering if you could help us find it."

She explained that North High is the closest high school to this park. I'll make sure to fabricate some transfer papers for Alice and me. Well that takes care of our cover. But where were we supposed to stay? Though it was a long shot I asked Haruhi "You wouldn't happen to know someone named Kanata Izumi, would you? She looks like she's in elementary school with long blue hair and green eyes."

"She'd be pretty mad if she heard you describe her like that. But yeah, I know her. In fact she gives me plenty of discounts for cosplay outfits!" she replied. Oh thank God we're saved! I don't know how long I'd be able to keep my sanity if I had to stay with Haruhi. I asked her to bring us to her shop.

It was quite a lengthy walk to her shop. On top of that I was still inexplicably tired. Haruhi went to the door of the shop and loudly knocked while yelling out "Izumi-san!" The lights in the shop turned on as Kanata opened the door.

"Haruhi? What are you doing here? The shop is closed now. If there's something you need I'll get it for you but-" she said before she saw us. "Riku! Alice! I'm glad to see you're both safe!" she happily exclaimed. Haruhi explained that she found us napping in the park. She told us that she would be waiting for us at school tomorrow, adding that Alice would have a spot reserved in the Brigade. She doesn't exactly seem like the type who can get a high turnout rate for her club. She may be beautiful but under that pretty façade lies a rather eccentric girl. After that she left. Kanata welcomed us in.

"Hey both of you made it! We were worried when we heard only Kelowna's elite team came back" greeted Saya.

"Enh? Fuuko is confused. Why did silver haired stranger dye his hair black?" asked a confused Fuuko. She must have met Friedrich before meeting me.

Kanata wasted no time trying to understand the situation. "So how exactly did you slide into this world? There's something similar to the Reality Barrier that prevents dimensional travel into and out of this world ever since almost four years ago."

"We did nothing. Somebody else brought us here. Wait, four years ago? You left for this mission at the same time as my rescue mission" I replied.

"Sometimes there are time flow differences when you slide between worlds. Considering how unique this world is I'm not too overly surprised" she explained.

"Well since we're stuck here too we'll attend high school as our cover. Although I'm somewhat curious as to what the SOS Brigade is…" I said.

"Oh and fortunately you're not staying here. Even if I wanted you to, we simply don't have the space. I doubt you'll have many qualms about using this location as your home for now…" she said as she scribbled a rough map onto scrap paper. Where can I possibly stay when I can't even afford rent? Guess I'll see soon enough.

Leaving Kanata's shop I synthesized a bike since our 'home' was quite some distance away. She commented at how cliché it is for couples to ride together but simply laughed it off. I pedaled while she stood on the pegs of the back wheel. Considering how far this place is from North High we may as well get used to this. No matter how cliché it may seem, it's actually quite fun and its good exercise.

The area where this place is supposed to be is surrounded by undeveloped land. I can't believe that in such a densely populated city there are still areas like this left. Well it shouldn't be much further now…

"I have not had the luxury of staying in a domicile like this for quite some time. Perhaps I can finally have some normalcy in my life once again" she commented as it came into view.

The 'home' I was referring to all this time turned out to actually be my home, Estate. I explained to Alice that I was the owner, or at least part-owner, of Estate. Just like with her Avalon, I don't exactly know how I came into possession of a home capable of moving through interdimensional space. It's actually more incredible now after learning in my Slider classes that such a thing is near impossible to create with technology available to us. Maybe Rewrite may know Estate's origins. Since she's a higher realm being maybe they have the means to create such a thing. Well whoever made this place gets extra points for aesthetics.

Out of habit I moved to the table where Luci and I swapped notes. Much to my surprise she left a note behind. Perhaps she was the one who anchored it here. At least I thought that till I saw the contents of the note…

_I'm sorry for suddenly just grabbing you two and yanking you back like that. Given the situation I'm sure you're probably not too concerned with that. This world is far more interesting than it may seem. As repayment for anchoring Estate to this world do keep an eye out for a friend of mine named Alan. Oh and take care of Haruhi as well. Maybe later you'll find out who I am._

I wonder if that girl is the true owner of Estate. Considering she somehow hijacked my house and punched through a barrier equal in strength to the Reality Barrier she must be either really special or really powerful. Well I'm glad she's on our side. Guess I'm stuck with babysitting Haruhi along with Alice. That'll be quite hard considering she did not extend an invitation to me to join the Brigade. Well I'll find a way. For now we should settle in. Good thing this place cleans itself.

I asked Ange to contact Kanata so I could get our paperwork for school ready. While I was at it I went up to the library so I could get an idea what the North High uniform looked like. It would seem they're just like any other standard Japanese uniform. I wonder how cute Alice would look in short sleeves and a skirt… As I worked on synthesizing our uniforms I heard dragging noises downstairs.

Alice was dragging one of the four-poster beds from another room. Damn she's pretty strong. Noticing me she asked "Do you mind if I share the same room as you? Your room seems like it is actually meant to be able to house two people." Hell I have no objections to that. Does she really trust me that much? "Of course feel free. There's too much empty space in there for my liking anyway."

I went back down, totting our class and gym uniforms. Holy crap, when the hell did she do all this? In the corner of our room our beds were side by side with a bed stand in between. On the other side of the room were our dressers (oh crap I don't remember which one is mine) opposite each other minus the mirrors, for obvious reasons. And finally beside the beds was a desk. And how did I only hear her moving the bed?

"Is the layout to your liking?" she asked me.

"Yeah, you did a great job. But you know, you don't always have to ask my permission to change the smallest little thing" I replied. Actually if I had bothered to help her out I could've just willed the room to look like it does now. I feel bad that she did all this manually by herself.

She flung herself onto what I guessed was her bed. She let out a contended sigh as she cuddled one of her pillows. "This is probably the most comfortable bed I have ever laid on. Perhaps I will be able to sleep much more easily tonight" she commented. I'm with her on that. Those beds are probably the reason why I felt so rejuvenated after a good night's rest. Given what she's been through a comfortable night's rest would be the least I could offer her. Speaking of which…"We haven't eaten yet. Other people have commented that my cooking is top notch. So let me handle dinner at least in return for fixing up the room."

I took the time to manually make dinner. To be honest I've always enjoyed making it by hand. The effort just seems to make it taste that much better. Anyway it always feels like it's missing something when I synthesize it. Alice seemed to enjoy it. The last time her life was like this was probably before the massacre. I'm glad to see her much more cheery.

"Oh by the way we need to establish our cover. I'm going with exchange student from Canada. If Friedrich's memories serve me correctly, that's where he lived before he became a slider. What about you?" I asked.

"Hmm Camelot's modern counterparts always seem to change from world to world. Since I cannot very well say I am from Camelot I shall say that I am an exchange student from England" she replied.

I suppose if anyone gets too curious we can just make up more stuff based on our experiences. For now we should focus on getting some rest. After eating the two of us went through the typical routine of brushing our teeth and getting changed into something more comfortable for sleeping.

"I will be relying on you quite a bit tomorrow. School is something I am not too familiar with. Given the time from which I originally came from this really should not come as a surprise" she said as she turned in for the night.

"Sure that won't be a problem. I would be starting my second year at Fantasia Academy right about now anyway. I'm sure we'll both enjoy a nice break from all the action" I replied before I too started falling asleep. I still don't understand why I'm so tired though… Maybe that girl had something to do with it. I'll just ask her when I meet her again.

Guess its back to school again tomorrow…


	21. Chapter 20

Chapter 20: The Recruitment of Alice Pendragon

Packing up our bags the two of us exited Estate. Just like the night before Alice rode atop the pegs on the back wheel while I pedaled. As I thought Alice looked quite cute in her uniform, especially with her hair tied off in a ponytail. Initially our route was devoid of any familiar faces. That of course changed when we reached the hill leading to the school. Ahead of us was Haruhi, a boy walking alongside her. A boyfriend perhaps? One would have to wonder either how insane or how patient he is to be able to deal with her.

"Good morning, Haruhi. And to you as well, Haruhi's lover" greeted Alice as she got off, walking with the others. Wow I can't believe she just said that. I mean more likely than not, he's probably just a friend. Well may as well join them too.

"What? Kyon isn't my boyfriend…" she said blushing red. You may not be romantically involved with him but that doesn't mean you don't hold feelings for him. Well she's not the type to openly (and conventionally) admit her feelings anyhow.

"Anyway…Kyon, this is Alice, a potential candidate for a new Brigade member" explained Haruhi. What, you're not gonna introduce me?

"Nice to meet you Alice" replied Kyon. "Well Haruhi, I'm genuinely surprised that you found a real mystery."

"Well I'm gonna go ahead and get the other recruits. Why don't you get acquainted with her!" Haruhi said as she ran ahead of us. For a 'normal' girl (and I use this term loosely) she sure runs fast.

"So what are you really?" asked Kyon suspiciously.

"Immortal, magic-using, knight princess" Alice replied back quite seriously. Oddly enough Kyon seemed to take it all in stride. I wonder what the other Brigade members are like for him to be so casual about this.

"Hmm. How about we settle for immortal then? I'm sure you'll be accepted into the Brigade without much trouble" said Kyon. "What about your friend?"

"Lover," corrected Alice, "to be honest I would simply generalize Riku as a Slider. In terms of specifics I am not sure and likely neither is he." She then held my hand in hers. This is nice and all but I am still lugging this bike along as well.

"Morning, Kyon! Hey who's this beautiful young lady?" asked who I believe is one of Kyon's friends.

"Don't bother Taniguchi, she's already taken" said Kyon as he pointed towards us holding hands.

"You're a really lucky man! If you want my opinion she's definitely more than an A++. You should know that's higher than the previous best!" commented Taniguchi. He better not try to harass Alice anymore or I'm gonna kick him right in the-

"Oh? Lost your devotion to Asakura have we, Taniguchi? Anyhow Alice, Riku, I hope both you enjoy it here at North High" said Kyon. Seriously…how can Kyon put up with all these kinds of people? Is he a reincarnation of a saint or something?

Alice hopped back on the bike as we continued on our way. We should drop by the office before we head to class to drop off our transfer papers. Heading to the office we did just that. Apparently our class is 2-5. Guess the two of us better look for the second years' hallway.

We made it in time to hear our teacher, Okabe-sensei, saying to the class that they would have a pair of new students. The two of us had a pretty good laugh when he said 'pair'. Opening the door, he gestured us to come inside.

Alice introduced herself first "Hello I am Alice Pendragon. I am an exchange student from England. I hope that all of us will have a great year together!" Just like with Haruhi, everyone in the class understood her even though she was speaking in another language. Although I'm sure most of her captivated audience is composed of guys having a nosebleed moment, not people interested in her apparent gift of Tongues. This is gonna be a long year…

"I'm Riku Furude, an exchange student from Canada. I'm sure we'll all be in for an interesting year together." It would seem I have a similar effect on our female peers that Alice has on the males. I thought people tended to be more intimidated by my appearance…But then again there is Solipse, so I guess there must be others who share her preferences. However as my introduction sunk in, I seemed to have garnered the interest of our male peers.

"Do you know someone named Ryoko Asakura?" asked quite a few of them. Asakura? Oh the stab-happy, blue haired alien. Wait come to think of it, how does Friedrich know that? I thought this world was cut off from all the other worlds. So does that mean he came over from the Reality side? Making a mental note to get answers for these questions later I responded "Actually yes I do know her. She was in one of my courses back in Canada. Unfortunately I don't know her all that well." Well my response looked like it scared the crap out of Kyon. I wonder if he was her unfortunate knifecushion.

Okabe-sensei pointed to a pair of desks side by side by the windows. Mine seemed to have the benefit of being right in front of Kyon. I'll make sure to question him about the SOS Brigade. With formalities out of the way the two of us began our classes here.

I was thankful that I ended up with the window seat. I thought the classes here could offer me some new tidbits of information. It turns out I already covered most of this material back at Fantasia. I'm kinda missing the combat and scenario simulations. They really helped to vary things and thus more interesting. Talk about all-encompassing education. For Alice though this is probably the first time she's formally learned about these things. She seems enthralled with it all. Well I best make some detailed notes she can use as supplementary notes later. Come to think of it I almost completely forgot about Ange in all this. I hope being quiet for a long time isn't driving Ange nuts. I'd rather not have a Skynet Mk. 2 who can hijack my body and use it as a WMD.

Soon it was time for lunch. I didn't even get a chance to speak with Alice before Haruhi dragged her away. Kyon gave me a sympathetic look as he motioned me to have lunch with him and his friends. Great…more Taniguchi… I was really hoping to ask Kyon about the Brigade in private.

"So how are the classes?" asked Kyon.

"I've already learned most of this back in Canada" I replied back as I took out my bento. Damn it Haruhi…you forgot to let Alice get hers. "Hey Kyon, could you bring me to your clubroom? Alice forgot her bento here" I asked holding up Alice's bento.

"Oh so you even make her bento huh?" said Taniguchi in a suggestive manner. Guh…I should've seen that one coming.

"Well we live together. I'm better at cooking than her so I figure I may as well make it since she's my girlfriend" I replied. Taniguchi spat out his drink. Kyon and his other friend simply acknowledged it as logical thinking. Hmm…I wonder who this other guy is. I already think of him more highly than Taniguchi.

"You live together? How long have you been going out?" asked a shocked Taniguchi.

I ignored Taniguchi. Not only is he getting annoying, I can't think up of a logical answer for that without saying we're sliders. Kyon asked me to follow him. The two of us made our way to what he called the Old Building. It seems like a dilapidated wing of the school. From what I can understand of Kyon's explanation this building is allocated to clubs. Going up the stairs, we saw Haruhi and Alice.

"Alice! You forgot your bento in the classroom" I said as I handed it to her.

"So are you giving her the grand tour?" asked Kyon.

"Yep! I've already introduced her to everyone else, so the clubroom is the last thing I need to show her" replied Haruhi. I guess Alice decided to join after all. I hope she's doing this just as much for herself as our favor to that girl. Haruhi opened the door to reveal a strangely well equipped clubroom. Add a portable stove and I could easily be their chef.

"So Riku…I heard from Alice you're quite well off. I might be able to recruit you if you can prove that. We can always use more financial support" she said as she glanced at Kyon. Oh, was that a faint blush I saw? I can just show her Estate for proof. But where the hell am I gonna get money to help fund Brigade activities? Maybe I can work for Kanata. Although I still never did figure out how much money Luci had.

With lunch approaching its end all of us returned to the classroom. More somewhat boring classes later, school ended. Haruhi told all of us to come along to the clubroom. We once again made our way to the clubroom. Upon entering we found three more people there that I haven't met yet.

"This is Riku. He's another of my potential candidates" Haruhi said as she introduced me to everyone.

"Itsuki Koizumi, nice to meet you" introduced who Haruhi described as her Vice-Commander. That just slightly worried me but I banished the thought away soon after. I wonder if he's always smiling like that.

"I'm Mikuru Asahina, a pleasure to meet you" said the one who Haruhi called their 'moe' mascot. Thank goodness she's not in Kyon's class to hear how Taniguchi talks about women.

"Yuki Nagato" said the girl who was reading a book. She took her eyes off her book and stared intently at me as if she were reading me like a book. "He is…interesting" she concluded.

"If Yuki says you're interesting you probably have a good chance of being recruited!" exclaimed Haruhi.

We spent a considerable amount of time just hanging out. Is the Brigade simply Haruhi's way of saying friends? Given what we're doing here it seems like a logical enough conclusion. I guess her eccentricity goes beyond her habits. Well at least she seems to enjoy it here. The others feel the same way too. Somehow though I can't shake the feeling that there's something about all of them (Kyon excluded). Maybe if I join the Brigade Alice, Ange and I can investigate this further.

However all things come to an end. All of us began to leave the clubroom to head home. As we headed to where I kept my bike, I contemplated how I was gonna take two people on it.

"Let's just walk there. It's pretty far but we can probably get there within a reasonable amount of time" I suggested.

"Nah you'll be able to take both of us" said Haruhi. Now how do you plan on doing that? As if to defy conventional logic (and obvious safety hazards) she stood on one peg while Alice was on the other. Well I'll give her kudos for that. Thankfully the orichalcon frame supported their weight and my own as I got on. Praying to God that none of us will get hurt, we went on our way.

I think even Haruhi was surprised as she saw it. We went inside and I asked them to head to the dining room. It would seem there's another note here…and a credit card?

_Hey Riku! Hope everything is going fine so far. Since you're stuck there I figure I may as well give you some money. I still suggest you get a part-time job so people won't think you're some kind of criminal. Enjoy things there little brother!_

_-Luci Onee-chan_

A big sister huh? I'm surprised she didn't just say that earlier. I already thought of her as one anyway. Well I better get dinner ready for us.

"This is awesome!" complimented Haruhi as she wolfed down all the food I served her.

"So tell me the real reason why you want me in your Brigade. Tsuruya already holds the position of 'heiress'" I asked her.

"Alice told me about your relationship with her. Apparently it wasn't easy for you two to be together so I didn't want to ruin that," she said blushing in embarrassment, "just don't tell anyone I said that alright?"

"You bet"


	22. Chapter 21

Chapter 21: The Arrival of Alan Kurayami

"Hey Riku, is it a trend in other countries to sleep on benches?" asked Haruhi as she tugged on Riku's hair as if they were reins.

"I doubt that's a trend anywhere, Haruhi. Why?" Riku asked back.

"Because someone is sleeping on that bench again" she replied.

Jeez who the hell talks this loud in the middle of the night? Wait, night? I was just on a plane in the middle of the afternoon! I stood up and saw a pair of silhouettes get off a bike. What the? Why am I in a park? Oh god I'm gonna get mugged and I don't even know where I am!

"Hey you! You should know it's prohibited to sleep on the park bench" scolded Haruhi.

"Where am I?" I asked.

"Japan. How could you have gotten this far without knowing that?" Riku responded.

"I'm not sure…" I responded. I can't just tell them 'Oh I'm sorry. Last I checked I was on a plane getting ready for take off in Canada'.

"You can stay at Haruhi's house. It's closer to this park than mine. From the looks of you, you're probably an exchange student or something. Her house is also pretty close to the school" suggested Riku.

"Hey don't go making decisions for the Supreme Commander!" objected Haruhi. Supreme Commander? Of what?

"He doesn't seem like the type to do anything stupid. If he does you can probably kick his ass" commented Riku. I'm not sure if that was a compliment or an insult…

"Alright if you say so. Riku, you don't mind going a little further do you?" she asked.

"I've already come this far, so why not. Hop on" said Riku as he and Haruhi got back on the bike. Where exactly am I supposed to go? Haruhi pointed to the other peg on the back wheel. You're kidding me, right? Thankfully it seems like I'll be ok. Although it's a bit awkward to have to hold on to Riku's shoulder for support. Then again if I did this on Haruhi, she'd probably punch me right off. Just as Riku said, her house wasn't that far away. Haruhi and I got off as Riku went back home. I wonder what his place is like.

Well at least I feel some of my memories coming back to me. I remember a bright light sucking me in before I blacked out. Strangely enough I also know Haruhi is a strange girl. So I was surprised to find that her house was exceedingly normal. That was until I went inside. It was wall to wall weirdness. Pretty much anything weird looking that could be vaguely considered decoration was hung on there. Haruhi had me follow her to one of her guest rooms. She said that I could use it and then left closing the door behind her. Guess I could use some sleep. Maybe after getting some rest I can make sense of things.

* * *

"Ange, did you detect that dimensional quake?" I asked her.

"Affirmative. The location is the park where you were before" she replied.

I started running towards the park. I watched as the radar on my HUD lit up like a Christmas tree. The quake must've been pretty large for that many of them to get through. I wonder if that guy that was just here had something to do with this. Now how can I seal this area off? I can't use the Fuzetsu. If Luci was telling the truth in one of her notes then every time I use it, I hurt Friedrich.

"Yuki?" I said in surprise when I saw her in the park.

"Temporarily isolating current area from this space" she said in a monotone voice. She then started saying some things in rapidfire fashion. Is she reprogramming this area? The area around us turned to gray, the moon and stars disappearing from the sky. So this is what Closed Space is. I, or rather Friedrich, didn't know that Yuki could do this. If this is Closed Space then Itsuki should be here soon as well.

"Yuki, do you know what's going on?" I asked her.

"No. This is an unknown data anomaly that I have never encountered before" she replied.

"Those things are Demons. If I were to describe them in a way you can understand…I'd call them an anomaly that can corrupt a world" I explained to her. "The best course of action is to eliminate them and then stabilize the dimensional quake."

"Understood. Commencing termination of corruption" she replied. Her hand turned into an energy sword. I guess I better help her out too.

"Ange, Ignition!" I cried out. With my Barrier Jacket equipped I summoned the twin Buster Shots that have become my new weapons.

With blinding speed and mechanical precision, she slashed easily through a trio of Furies. I picked off a pair of Doppelgangers that have yet to transform. Even though there were still plenty of Demons left, Yuki inexplicably stopped.

"Yuki, what's wrong?" I asked.

"Corruption has been neutralized" she said. Uh, not when there's still fifteen Chaoses running-…oh crap right. Inhabitants of a world can't see them. I started mowing down all of the Chaoses in the park. Thank goodness they're pretty weak. Yuki simply stared at me as from her perspective I was shooting at thin air. Well that wasn't too bad for a dimensional quake.

"_Now_ the corruption is neutralized. I'll handle stabilizing the dimensional quake" I said as I went over to it. For a relatively average dimensional quake, it's pretty hard to stabilize. I wonder what could've possibly entered this world. I thought there was supposed to be a barrier sealing this world. There we go, that should stabilize it.

"Where's the Shinjin?" asked Itsuki as he arrived.

Just a little late there pretty boy…

* * *

I practically jumped off my bed to the floor as I heard an extremely loud banging sound right by my ear. Go figure…it's Haruhi with a gong. Can't I have a normal morning and wake up to an alarm?

"Man you sure are a heavy sleeper" said Haruhi.

"So you wake me up with a freaking gong? And at point blank range too!" I yelled back angrily at her. I don't even have the paperwork for school done yet so there's no reason I should be up early.

"As the Supreme Commander's assistant you have to wake up at the same time as me" she said.

Man, what time is it anyway? You're kidding me…5'oclock? Who in their right mind wakes up at 5'oclock? Too bad I'm wide awake now. If I still felt tired I would've just ignored her and went back to bed. Well I'm sure even she's not cruel enough to at least serve me breakfast.

Well at least the breakfast was alright. With this I should have enough energy to voice my complaints. Still though I wonder what Haruhi has planned that involves getting up at 5'oclock.

"Was there any point in waking up early?" I asked her.

"Not today, no. I almost always go jogging before I have breakfast and get ready for school. But I was busy at Riku's place yesterday until late at night. You should know the rest" she explained. You go jogging at 5 in the morning? Wow you really are weird. Well at least the rest of your explanation is believable. I guess even she's still a little tired still. So then why didn't she just sleep in? Guess it must just be force of habit.

"For today I'll let you off for not waking up on time. Next time though you'll get a penalty" stated Haruhi. Penalty? That can't possibly be good…

"Anyway I'll be at school all day today. After that I'd like to introduce you to the SOS Brigade," said Haruhi as she handed me a shopping list with a map on it, "but I need these things for our club. Follow the directions to the shop and get the stuff on the list. Then meet us in the park where you were yesterday. _Don't_ be late. Believe me; I'm saying this for your own good."

Oh joy, I've been promoted from total stranger to chore boy. I wish I could just sleep in. Then again I might as well familiarize myself with the area. I might be lazy but I'm not stupid enough to get lost. Getting lost takes too much energy anyway. I managed to freshen up before Haruhi dragged me out the door. Guess I should get the stuff then.

What kind of shop is this? There's no way a normal person would wear these outfits. Then again Haruhi isn't normal. So let's see what she wanted me to buy.

"Waitress costume with extra large breast size and a gothic Lolita dress…" I said to no one in particular. Wait, extra large breast size? Sure Haruhi is pretty well endowed but even hers aren't _that_ big. And I can't even imagine her in a gothic Lolita dress.

"Will that be all?" asked a small elementary school girl. I thought there was school today…

"Is the owner around?" I asked feeling guilty about letting a little girl do the work of the owner.

"I'm the owner. You thought I was a little girl didn't you?" she replied rather disappointedly. Crap, must recover from awkward situation!

"Oh no, that's not it. You look quite young to be the owner" I replied back. Whoops…I think I just confirmed her suspicions.

"I'm glad you think I still look young. So, did Haruhi send you?" she asked.

"Yeah. She's a regular here isn't she?" I asked back.

She explained that Haruhi has been a regular customer ever since she was in middle school. As such she gets a regulars' discount and even has her own tab. Strangely enough she asked me for my name and what kanji it uses. Being from Canada I wouldn't know so I gave her the katakana for it instead. Why does she want to know my name in such detail? She handed me the costumes and offered me to stay for a while. I'm ahead of schedule so I'm sure Haruhi won't mind.

And now I'm not. I ran as fast as I could to head to the park. Win! I got here just in the nick of time. There was a large group hanging out with Haruhi. They were all wearing the same uniform so that must mean they're the SOS Brigade. The small one with purple hair is Yuki Nagato, an alien if I remember correctly. The cute one must be Mikuru Asahina the time traveler. I guess I know who that waitress costume is for. The perpetually smiling esper is Itsuki Koizumi. And the last one I know here is Kyon, the unfortunate normal person surrounded by people with incredible powers. But I don't remember those two being part of the Brigade. Haruhi made them introduce themselves. I only half listened until the last two introduced themselves.

That's weird, she doesn't even look Japanese. But I have to say that she's beautiful. She seems like a cheery person but there's something about her. Sadness maybe? I wouldn't be able to even hazard a guess though. "I'm Alice Pendragon, an exchange student from England." So that's why she doesn't look Japanese.

The last member looks pretty intimidating. Still though he seems like a nice guy. I'm sure he must be a hit amongst the girls at Haruhi's school. "Riku Furude, from Canada. Nice to meet a fellow Canadian here." Another Canadian eh? My memory is still a little hazy when it comes to my personal life but I swear I had a friend that looks like him… "Have we met before Alan-kun? You seem eerily familiar…" he asked me.

"Actually maybe we have. You seem familiar too" I said back.

"Riku, Alice thanks for finding my little brother!" said an unknown woman as she ran over to us.

"Your brother?" Riku responded, initially confused, "Oh that's right you mentioned that he flew in from Canada yesterday!"

I don't have a sister, do I? She seems to be in her late teens to early twenties, so she fits the bill if that were true. "Come with me for a little while. We need to have a talk. Riku, mind coming along too? Kanata said she might need your help later" said the woman as she dragged me along with Riku following.

"What just happened?" asked a confused Haruhi.


	23. Chapter 22

Chapter 22: The Mission of Alan Kurayami

"You don't need to worry I'm not your sister" she said laughing at my uneasiness about that.

"Where are you two taking me?" I asked suspicious of the woman.

"It's alright we just need to ask you some questions. Oh and I can vouch for Saya when she says you're not her brother" Riku responded. Haruhi may keep weird people around her but I know all of them are trustworthy. But Riku isn't part of the original Brigade so is he trustworthy too?

"Let's start with how you got here" said Saya.

"I was on a plane. It was taking off but then there was this bright light. Next thing I know I'm lying down on a bench in some park in Japan" I explained.

"Well that explains your reaction to Haruhi and I last night. It probably explains your memory-lock as well" said Riku as he mulled over the situation. "Including the dimensional quake last night that can only mean you're a slider."

"Dimensional quake? Sliders? I don't get what you're saying" I said in confusion.

"It seems like his memory-lock is still in effect. Well I have ways of disabling it" said Saya. "Close your eyes" ordered Saya. She took my hand in hers. I hope this isn't what I think this is. "You can open your eyes now" she said.

Phew finally I can see…the…sun…huh? Where'd the sun go? Is it night already? Wah, what'd she do to me?

"Where are-" I said before I realized what was going on. "This is Closed Space, isn't it?"

"See, you're starting to remember. Espers would be arrogant to believe they're the only ones who can enter Closed Space. Lots of different beings can enter and even create Closed Space" Saya explained. She continued "This one is a replica of one created last night."

"By Yuki for that matter" added Riku.

"So how do you guys know so much about Closed Space?" I asked curious as to how these complete strangers knew all this.

Riku took over explaining and began "When you tamper with time and space sometimes you create dimensional and time quakes. The former is especially dangerous as it can lead to an apocalypse. As such we monitor spacial and quantum anomalies every so often, especially when Espers are involved."

"'We'? So there's more of you eh? Who are you people exactly?" I asked trying to sate my curiosity.

"We are Sliders from the DSO or Dimensional Slider Organization. We are a collective of beings with the ability to slide between worlds. Our missions include, but are not limited to, eliminating Demon infestations, retrieving Objects and stabilizing dimensional and quantum abnormalities like dimensional quakes" Riku elaborated.

This is pretty freaking awesome. I can't believe I actually traveled to another world! I'm sure some of my friends would kill me on the spot if they knew I was living with Haruhi. But still though it's pretty hard to believe all this. Then again the Closed Space makes it hard to disbelieve.

"So you're saying I slid into this world? How exactly did I do that?" I asked.

"I was hoping you would've remembered already. Man your memory-lock is pretty stubborn!" she said in frustration. Well I'm sorry it's so damn stubborn. I didn't ask for my memory to be locked either. The gray space began to dissolve away until everything became a white void. Matrix reference much?

"This is a gate world. This is one way a slider can slide from world to world. Come over here and look through that gate" said Saya. Both Riku and I walked over to where she was and looked through. It was my hometown. My memories started coming back to me, albeit hazily. Memories of my friends…and what happened to them. I stroked the jade necklace I was wearing. This is starting to become too much for me…

"Riku…? Why are you crying?" Saya asked Riku.

"It's not me. It's Friedrich's memories. This is his hometown. I don't exactly know why but this place has many painful memories for him" he said as he wiped the tears from his face. Friedrich? That name sounds familiar…all too familiar. But why? I tried walking through the gate to go back but I hit an invisible wall.

"I'll tell you this: _No one_ has ever been able to break through that barrier" Saya said.

"That's not true. Friedrich had to have broken through this barrier before. Otherwise he wouldn't be here in the Fictional World. There's also that Haruhi lookalike that saved me…" Riku objected.

"Ok, _very _few people can break through this barrier. For the rest of us we can only open a window into the Real World" Saya corrected herself.

"So this barrier thingy separates fiction from reality then. Does that mean I'm fake now?" I asked.

"Not at all. And neither are we. Just as everything that happens to you in the real world is reality, everything that happens to us here is reality as well" she explained.

"So then which world are you from?" I asked the two of them.

"Only other DSO Sliders are privy to that info. And it doesn't really matter since I don't know where I'm from exactly" stated Riku.

"So if you were watching me through this gate then you know what happened to me" I said to Saya. Saya showed me what she saw. Darkness? No…it can't be…

"Fuu-chan!" she yelled out at a girl as the world returned back to the way it was before.

"It's alright…I just have to accept that as reality" I said. Depression shrouded me. I wanted to just kill myself. But since I'm already dead apparently that's impossible… How can Riku be laughing at me?

"Ok, stop Fuuko…That was hilarious though. Don't let Kanata catch wind of what you just did" Riku said as his laughter slowly petered off.

"That wasn't funny, Fuu-chan! Apologize to Alan-kun right now!" Saya scolded Fuuko.

"Relax Alan," said Riku, "It would seem Fuuko has significantly improved the quality of her illusions."

That was an illusion? Hallelujah, praise the Lord! I AM ALIVE! But wait what really happened? Suffice it to say I'm pissed off at Fuuko. I shot a death glare in her direction.

"That wasn't what happened. I saw you reading a light novel on the plane. Next thing you know, BAM! You're on this side of the barrier" explained Saya.

"Wah~ Weird one is looking at me like Fuuko's archnemesis!" she said as she hid behind Saya. Oh this is just the beginning…just wait till we're alone! Wow did I really say something like that…Deep breaths now. Remember anger led Anakin to the dark side of the force! "Fuuko has to go now. I promised Izumi-san I would make snacks today" she said as she fled.

"Come on. Kanata is one of our Commanders. I'm sure she would want to talk to you as well" said Saya as she dragged me along. A Commander? This person must be pretty amazing then. I can't wait to meet her. As we walked along I thought about all the things they just told me. It was odd but so interesting! I'm sure Haruhi would have a field day if she found out about this.

"Kanata! We're back!" called out Saya.

"Ah nice to see you back here Alan-kun" said Kanata. Wait she's a Commander? How does that even work? I watched as Saya reappeared from one of the rooms with a bottle of cold milk. She gulped it all down in three seconds flat. So you have set a new record for me to beat!

"So do you know how you ended up here?" asked Kanata. I told her I still did not. She looked at Saya and scolded her for not elaborating on the situation. So a bottle of milk is more important than a lost dimensional slider who has no idea how he travelled to another world, all the way to another continent, on the other side of the world? Two words: Hell yes.

"So then all three of you live together?" I asked.

"Yes, as you might've experienced for yourself it can be quite lively at times" she said back, somewhat embarrassed. Indeed. But living with Haruhi is much livelier.

"They remind me of my own family back home" she said happily. Wait she actually married someone with a lolicon complex? How you put up with him, I do not know. "Why not stay? Fuu-chan is rather adept at making snacks" she offered. Sure enough moments later Fuuko reappeared with…a shuriken shaped cake?

Sadly I had eaten much of the delicious cake before Fuuko said "Fuuko's archnemesis really likes Fuuko's starfish cake!" Starfish? I couldn't look at the delicious cake without thinking of those slimy things. I put my plate down as I felt like I was going to vomit from repulsion. Riku went in for the steal, devouring my piece in less than a second. Do you have a cast iron, industrial strength stomach?

"So how's business been lately?" asked Saya.

"Quite well. With Tanabata being tomorrow a lot of people have bought my kimonos and yukatas" Kanata replied contently. "What about you?" she asked Saya.

"I'm in the process of finding more bounties but so far no big targets" she said. Is the world like a firing range to her?

"So what kind of work do you do?" I asked, curious to get a better idea.

"I'm a Sweeper, a kind of bounty hunter" she replied proudly as she pulled out her gun.

"Wah! Put that away!" I said. I'm pretty sure it's illegal to even _have_ a firearm in Japan.

"Relax the safety is on see?" she said pointing to a mechanism on the gun. Why would you bother showing me? I don't even know which way is on or off. She added "And anyway I just use this to immobilize people. I don't normally kill them. The money I make contributes to my snack and milk fund." I kinda feel bad for the criminals. Their lives equate to snacks. But for the milk? Totally freaking worth it.

"Hey what's wrong with Fuuko? She's been like that for a while now" I noted. She was just sitting there as if she was in a total state of enlightenment, oblivious to the world around her. And then several hundreds of years later a secret society will find her in that state and try to awaken her. Wait someone already did that one.

"Starfish sensory overload state. She'll be fine…I think" Riku pointed out. Sure enough as he finished the starfish cake she regained her senses.

"So why are you all here?" I asked everyone.

"Saya, Fuu-chan and I are here on a mission to investigate Haruhi. As for Riku and Alice, I believe that they ended up here out of chance. Riku may be a DSO Slider Initiate but he isn't part of the team roster for this mission" Kanata explained. "My theory on why you're here is that Haruhi wished it. Although I don't think you were who she intended to bring here. Her wild imagination often conflicts with her very rigid logic."

"Knowing Haruhi she probably wanted Asakura to come back. I'm sure Kyon would _not_ like that. Somehow I get the idea that that stab-happy alien used him as a knifecushion" Riku further elaborated. Ouch. I guess Haruhi can do more than make Closed Space when she's stressed. Apparently willing anything she desires into existence is her true power. If that's the case she must be the Fictional World's equivalent to God. I already feel bad for everyone.

"Aren't you all scared that she could end the world on a whim?" I asked.

"She's only ever done that once…or rather came close to it. We know that ever since she met Kyon and formed the SOS Brigade her mental state has stabilized considerably" she replied.

"Being a slider it would be best if you associate with the DSO. There is another faction out there you definitely don't want to be associated with" said Riku. Ok, so your point is…"I believe that you're best suited to investigating Haruhi. Your proximity from her makes you ideal for this role. Though she has a genuine interest in Alice due to a talent of hers I failed to cover our proximity from her limits our interactions to club activities."

"What Riku means to say is that we, the DSO, are asking you to do a favor for us. We believe that if you investigate Haruhi we can find out why everyone who slid into this world prior to four years ago is stranded" she explained.

"Kyon is more or less unaware of the existence of sliders. Though Alice told him I am one he believes me to be more of an enigma. As such you should be able to fake that role easily enough" Riku said.

"Your transfer papers are ready. Starting tomorrow you'll be a student at North High. Kyon has grown used to the oddities around him so it would be best to approach him first" suggested Kanata.

"Anyway I better get back to Haruhi. I'm sure she'll slap some penalty on me for disappearing and taking one of her Brigade members with me" I said as I sighed in exasperation.

"I'll go with you and clear up any misunderstandings" Saya offered as she got up and escorted me back.

"So you like milk huh? You remind me of someone I liked back home…" Saya said as she daydreamed. She must have a pretty interesting past. Chasing the bad guys, travelling and action packed days. I admired her life, hell maybe even Saya herself. And it certainly helps that she likes milk. You cannot go wrong with that.

Soon we reached Haruhi's house. Saya explained to Haruhi that I had some family matters to attend to. As for Riku she said that he promised to help Kanata in exchange for some free yukatas for Brigade costumes. Surprisingly enough she was actually pretty cool about the whole thing. Saya left leaving me with the baroness Haruhi.

"You should be more like Riku! Try to be more productive!" she exclaimed. I wonder how they're gonna support Riku's cover. Are they really gonna give him free yukatas or does he already have some stashed away? "I'll let you off the hook for today. Next time try to attend to personal matters on your own time!" she said before letting me in.

"You better rest up. Tanabata is tomorrow and I've got lots of activities lined up for us! That and you start school tomorrow" she said.

Sorry but you lost my attention after 'You better rest up'. Well I'm off to bed.


	24. Chapter 23

Chapter 23: The Power of Alan Kurayami

I once again jumped straight off my bed right onto the floor. Wanna know why? Haruhi's death gong…at point blank range again might I add. Honestly it's still too early to be up yet. What can she possibly want?

"Late! Penalty!" she yelled at me as she passed judgment. Wait, for what? It's still before 5 so that's not it. She pointed to the remains of an annihilated alarm clock in the corner of the room. Oh…that's why I woke up late. Crap…I woke up late…

"Ten laps around the neighborhood" ordered Haruhi. Guh…at 5 in the morning. "Shut up and let's begin our jog!" As we ran along Haruhi introduced me to her neighbors as her new slave. I gave up after a while trying to explain. Well at least I learned that she's quite popular in her neighborhood. Stopping at a convenience store for a short break I began to complain to Haruhi that we haven't had breakfast yet. She proceeded to give me a whole spiel on the importance of exercise. She can only say that because I swear she drains energy from everybody around her. I breathed a sigh of relief as the end of the tenth lap dumped us in front of her house.

Too awake to go back to bed I begged Haruhi for something to eat. She gave me a slice of burnt toast. Some breakfast there Haruhi… Since I had plenty of time left I changed into my uniform and watched Haruhi go about getting ready. In a few moments I would regret doing that…

"What are you doing? Help me out!" she ordered.

"What do you want me to do? Help change you into your uniform?" I replied. Actually…Oh god I did not just have those thoughts about her…Without me noticing it, time flew by and it was time to go to school. Guh I can't help it if I'm perpetually tired.

It was difficult walking trying to walk side by side with Haruhi. Every time I caught up with her, she would move ahead. Is she trying to do it on purpose? As we got closer to the school we saw Kyon ahead of us, equally exhausted as I was. Haruhi ran up to him. After exchanging a few greetings she walked with him discussing something. Hmm what scheme are they trying to concoct this time? Kyon may seem annoyed by Haruhi but that's where his loyalty (and probably romantic interests) lies. I mean what kind of normal person would befriend Haruhi?

"Excuse us! Coming through!" yelled out a beautiful girl as she and her boyfriend whipped by at inhuman speeds right by me. Wait was that Riku biking?

Eventually Haruhi continued on ahead without either Kyon or I. He slowed down to let me catch up. With still a little bit more ground to cover he struck up a conversation with me.

"Sorry if Haruhi is being overbearing to you" he said.

"Well it's not all bad. She can be pretty interesting sometimes" I said.

"Well…sometimes I suppose" he remarked.

"You didn't exactly get a chance to introduce yourself properly yesterday. So tell me something about yourself. I hear from Haruhi you're from Canada" he asked. There was still just a little bit further to go so I decided to tell him about myself. I gave him a very generic description of myself: calm and hates overworking. Oh and sleeping.

"You wouldn't happen to be an alien, time traveler or esper?" he said rather casually. I just looked at him dumbfounded. 'Ignorance is bliss' really applies to this situation. Best to remain ignorant until I feel more comfortable about posing as a Slider. Seeing the look on my face he remarked "Hmm I guess Haruhi's stupidity is rubbing off on me now. So stupidity was contagious after all…"

"I mean those kinds of things don't exist, right?" I lied.

"Yeah…I guess…" he said, "Well we're here. Try to enjoy what Japan has to offer. Maybe if you look around you'll find something interesting." It would seem in this world's Japan you don't find interesting things, they find you. He led me to the office to be processed.

Apparently I'm in class 2-5. I'm sure with all the second year classes here there's a slim chance I'll be in Haruhi's class. Although I would like to be in a class with either Kyon or Riku. Maybe even that beautiful girl from this morning…Gah must keep inappropriate thoughts under control! I soon found my class as Mr. Okabe welcomed me in and asked me to introduce myself. I'll try to keep it brief.

"Hi, my name is Alan Kurayami. I'm an exchange student from Canada. I like to relax on my spare time" I said. I looked around the class. Hah, win! Kyon, Riku and that beautiful girl are all in my class. I'm sure at least in class I'll have some normalcy and peace. Then Kyon turned around revealing who was behind him. Hell…No…To make matters worst Mr. Okabe motioned me to sit with her.

"Hey Alan!" greeted Haruhi. God, why have you forsaken me?

I guess classes are the same universally or rather dimensionally since only multiple dimensions exist here. Every lesson leaves you feeling more and more tired. The Japanese History teacher certainly didn't help with her lullaby voice. Alan go beddy bye now. I began to dream I was lying on a sunny hill. The grass made the perfect mattress and I had a bottle of milk in hand. Nothing can possibly ruin this.

All of a sudden my view of the calming sky was blocked out by Fuuko. Wah…what is she doing in my dream?

"What are you doing here? I didn't give you permission to come into my dream!" I angrily asked her.

"Fuuko is only here on business" she said. She explained that while every person had their own dreams, their consciousness goes to this World of Dreams. Since this is a world, it is within a slider's ability to travel here if they pleased. Then as if to insult me she said she doesn't like coming here because my dreams suck. Then again all I ever have is the same nightmare over and over again. Guess I can't really blame her then… She continued to explain that she's here in anticipation of a dimensional quake. Am I really such a magnet for these quakes? Just as I was about to ask her what a quake was like, I got to experience it firsthand.

First the whole world began to shake violently. Then the peaceful meadow became covered by a myriad of fissures. I thought that was it until something came floating up out off the largest fissure, unfortunately situated in front of us. The bright orb floated clear away from the fissure. Fuuko took out her starfish carvings ready to fight. Wait, those things are weapons?

"Um, so what now?" I asked her.

"That Demon is a Doppelganger. Since you're linked to Suzumiya's world, it will manifest itself according to her power" she explained. As she finished explaining it turned into a massive glowing giant. "Fuuko is glad it's a Shinjin. Fuuko doesn't like it when they turn into starfishes." And how is a starfish dangerous? All of a sudden holograms began appearing in front of me. There was one for Fuuko, the Shinjin and for me. There were all sorts of labels I didn't understand. But I did understand our HP bars and levels. Fuuko was apparently level 30, the Shinjin level 10 and me…level 0? This thing has got to be broken…

Fuuko attacked the Shinjin by throwing her starfish carving at its head. So they were shuriken after all! But honestly what's a wooden carving gonna do to a giant? Remove half its HP apparently. Is she using ActionReplay or something? The Shinjin prepared to retaliate and raised its arm as it prepared to smash Fuuko. Too bad for me it turned its attention to me. I don't want to die, even in my dreams! I instinctively put up my arms in a vain attempt to block it as I closed my eyes.

However something amazing happened when I opened my eyes again. It would seem I was inside the Shinjin's arm. Moments later its whole arm dissolved away. Fuuko looked at me in amazement, obliviously unaware of the other arm swinging down on her.

"Split Heavens!" Riku cried out as he performed a flaming uppercut with his red energy sword. The Shinjin's other arm was sliced in half then dissolved in a burst of black flames. Ok…that was pretty awesome. "Finish him!" he cried out to Fuuko. She snapped out her daze. A holographic message popped up saying "Riku Furude, level !#$%, has joined your Party. The hologram brought my attention back to the Shinjin. Cracks began to spread out from where Fuuko's carving hit. It continued to spread, blue fire erupting from them. Seconds later the Shinjin exploded in a large burst of glowing starfish confetti.

"What did you just do?" I asked her.

"That was Fuuko's special attack, Legendary Starfish Heat!" she proudly proclaimed. More like Starfish Sign "Grunt Birthday Surprise". Riku walked up to us donning pretty wicked looking armor.

"Hey Fuuko, the revised hologram system still has that bug in it where it won't display my level properly" he said to her. Fuuko ignored him, trapped in another of her starfish enlightenment moments. Riku put the hilt of his sword into a gun as he started shooting away all the remaining starfish confetti. Not surprisingly Fuuko returned to her senses.

As if unaware of the trance-like state she enters she continued "What move did you use? As the Shinjin smashed down on you its arm dissolved away."

"I didn't even attack. I just tried using the Flee option. Guess this thing is broken just like Riku said" I told her. Fuuko contemplated this for a moment before settling with "Weird person just got weirder." She then proceeded to vanish.

"Somehow I get the idea that that wasn't a bug or error. I'll report to Kanata what happened here later. I would suggest you wake up before Haruhi-" was all I heard him say before I woke up to a loud banging sound and intense pain.

"Wake up!" Haruhi yelled at me angrily.


	25. Chapter 24

Chapter 24: The Wanderings of Alan Kurayami

Riku handed me an icepack for my head. Damn it Haruhi, wake up people normally. Kyon explained that the same thing happened to him last year when Haruhi decided to form the SOS Brigade. I was about to ask Riku what his power was when Kyon's other friends joined us for lunch.

"Yo! Welcome to North High!" yelled the one Kyon called Taniguchi. Obnoxiously loud person.

"Hey, nice to meet you" introduced the one Kyon called Kunikida. More polite, I'm already starting to warm up to you.

"Oh Taniguchi you should apologize to Alice for rating her in front of her face yesterday. Believe me, if you don't bad things will happen" warned Riku as he took out his bento and started eating.

"She should be honored by the score I gave her. So Alan how do you like school here?" asked Taniguchi.

"Lack of A.C. aside quite pleasant. Even with Haruhi around" I replied.

"So are there more hot girls back at your school in Canada?" he asked slyly.

Saw this coming from a kilometer away. Meh I guess I'll humor him. "Yeah, plenty. You'll probably like there" I replied. Kyon and Riku looked at me like I was Taniguchi's clone. Guess I'll explain later.

Soon enough I finished my lunch. Riku excused himself and left. Though Kyon wanted to stay and chat with the other two, I felt like wandering around. The layout is consistent throughout so I only need to wander around this floor. As I walked outside I saw a vending machine for strawberry milk and a large tree. After some intense internal debate I chose the milk over the tree. I gleefully ran towards the vending machine and was about to get myself some milk. I regained my composure as I saw some upperclassmen girls looking at me and giggling. I quickly ducked into a niche as Haruhi came running by looking for me. When the coast was clear I left the comfortable niche. With a forceful collision we both fell to the ground in an awkward position. I'll leave it to your imagination what that position was.

"Oh I'm so sorry Alan-kun. This wasn't supposed to happen" the girl apologized. Auburn hair, light voice and she held a bottle of 99% strawberry milk to her chest. I must've died and gone to Heaven…

Both of us got back up. "I'm alright. I should be the one apologizing for not watching my surroundings" I replied. She stayed for my apology but ran away as soon as I was finished. I wonder where Mikuru was off to in such a hurry. She must have been embarrassed that Haruhi had her cosplay as a teacher.

As I turned around Mikuru ran into me again. Let's see…auburn hair, light voice and she's holding a bottle of 99% strawberry milk to her chest. Yep that's Mikuru alright. But wasn't she just cosplaying as a teacher a second ago?

"Here I wanted to give you this Alan-kun. Suzumiya said you like this kind of milk…" she said as she handed me the milk. How'd Haruhi learn that? I accepted the milk from Mikuru.

"Thanks a bunch!" I said as I started drinking the milk. The two of us walked down the hall in awkward silence.

"I wanted to ask-!" the two of us said in unison. She quietly told me to go first.

"Isn't it exhausting being with Haruhi? I mean she always seems to have things…'planned' for you" I replied.

"It isn't all bad. But the b-bunny suit…Wah~!" she said as she broke down.

"If she tries it again I promise I'll be there to protect you" I said to her. She cheered up a little, mumbling something like "…someone else said that too…"

Before I left I asked her if she had a sister. She said no and looked at me confused. Did I just meet her future self?

I drifted off some time just after English. I had a dream that I was protecting a girl from a group of thugs. I was surprised that I knew how to fight and move so well in my dreams. However just like always the girl ends up getting shot by a dark-blonde haired woman and I woke up. It seems like I woke up in time for an epic dodgeball moment. I watched, as if in slow-mo, a ball fly right into Taniguchi's face. The force of the impact sent him flipping end over end before he collapsed, passed out. I looked over to who had scored the headshot. It was Alice, Haruhi praising her for a sound kill.

"Not only did you manage to sleep standing up but you dodged the balls in your sleep too" remarked an amused Kyon. He narrowly dodged a ball thrown by Haruhi. Good thing too since it was like a bullet. However another ball thrown by Riku hit Kyon and its force caused it to deflect hitting me, effectively eliminating everyone left on our team.

"Double kill" he soundly said as Alice and Haruhi cheered. If I wasn't on the losing team I'd praise him for his epic throw. Haruhi came over to me to gloat I guess.

"Quit sleeping during class! We must constantly show everyone what the SOS Brigade is capable of!" she scolded. I think Riku and Alice just took care of that. "Remember; come to the clubroom after school today. Anyway let's hurry up, everyone else has left already."

Well at least school is almost over. I just sat with my head on the desk listening to Haruhi and Kyon conversing. Haruhi was overly energetic while Kyon autonomously replied with 'yeah' and 'really'. The two of them perfectly contradict each other. I guess opposites really do attract after all. Haruhi was going on about how today is important. Kyon was just giving half assed guesses by listing off the names of the Brigade members followed by 'birthday'. He finally got it right when he said Tanabata.

Right she mentioned that last night. Well being a foreigner I have no idea what Tanabata is. Whatever it is though, it's significant enough to keep Haruhi's attention. They went on debating for a while about its real date and whether they should go to the festival or not. A festival? I'm there. Haruhi tried to convince Kyon to go to no avail. I heard Haruhi instructing Kyon to bring me to the clubroom after school. He eagerly agreed to bring me right into Haruhi's trap. What the hell, you sold me out? As I lifted my head I saw quite a few girls giggling as they packed their bags.

"Relaxation is key to a long lifespan," noted Alice, "but do it too much and you are giving the impression you are a delinquent." I'm glad she's concerned but quite frankly I already know all that and I don't really care. Resigning to my fate I walked out of the classroom to the clubroom.

For the third time today someone ran into me. The green haired upperclassman girl just laughed hysterically. "I'm sorry…I'm Tsuruya" she said in between fits of laughter. I'm covered in noodles and that's all she can do?

"Alan" I plainly replied. "I'm sorry but my uniform is soiled, I'm deprived of sleep and starving to the point where licking these noodles off myself would be a feast. As you can see my day isn't going well so I wouldn't mind if you stop laughing."

"Well at least you like my noodles!" she said as she continued laughing. "You shouldn't lose your temper so quickly. If you go to the clubroom I'm sure you'll feel a little better. Anyway I should head there later and give Haru-nyan some noodles after I remake them." She pointed to the clubroom, a paper sign saying 'SOS-dan' over another sign.

I entered the clubroom as the Brigade exclaimed "Welcome to the Brigade!" It had been decorated for this occasion. Was this what Haruhi was scheming all this time? So even she has a good side. She threw me into an empty seat as Mikuru asked if I would like some tea. Screw milk, I'm drinking tea today. Without any need for further introductions the party started. I teared up at the thought…this was the best cup of tea…I've ever had…


	26. Chapter 25

Chapter 25: The Legend of Haruhi Suzumiya

The party had long since passed. After we put the decorations away Haruhi left. The clubroom fell into a state of serene calm; probably something that doesn't happen often. I continued enjoying Mikuru's tea whilst locked in a chess game with Itsuki. I wonder if I was good at chess or if Itsuki was just a horrible player. Either way it was a one-sided battle I knew I was gonna win. Kyon looked like he was getting help from Riku and Alice for our English exam. I was surprised that Riku could speak fluent, understandable English; I honestly thought he could only speak Japanese. Kyon asked if I could help him out too. I told him that all he needed to do was brute force memorization and he would be fine. He shot me an annoyed looked as I continued my game with Itsuki.

With a crash Haruhi returned yelling "Ya-hoo!" carrying a bamboo plant with her. She was like a manifestation of all the madness in the world contained within a pretty high schooler.

"Where'd you get that and what're you planning with it?" I asked as I read the pieces of paper hanging from its spindly branches.

"Why, it's for hanging wishes of course!" she excitedly explained. Reading the papers hanging off it confirmed that.

"Here we go again…" Kyon said as he sighed.

"We've already made our wishes but Alice, Riku and Alan hasn't yet. I figured I may as well let them" she said handing us a piece of paper she called a tanzaku. Before I wrote down my wish she stopped me to explain something. She went on how the wishes are directed at the speed of light to a star _x_ light-years away and that therefore it takes _y_ number of years for the wish to make it there and back to be granted. Despite the ridiculousness of the restriction, her explanation was actually sound, if not a little odd.

After I wrote it and hung it on the bamboo tree, Haruhi placed it on the window ledge. She stared melancholically at it. Somehow it felt odd for her to be quiet for so long. I was gonna remark how cute she looks when she's quiet but it didn't seem right. I kept the comment to myself while I finished my game with Itsuki. As we played I heard her mutter quietly "…sixteen years, huh?"

"Let's call it a day" she said as she picked up her bag and left. She came back and asked "Aren't you coming? You might get lost if you head back by yourself." She gestured me to follow after I picked up my bag. Even I know now's not a good time to talk to her.

As we walked along we passed near Kanata's house. Suddenly Haruhi stopped. She asked if I had any money. I just came from another country, from another dimension. Obviously I don't have any! She explained that she was charging me for staying at her house. As much as I hated to admit it I knew I was going to have to work. I knew she was going to force to look for a part-time job. Before she could do anything I suggested working at Kanata's shop. It can't be that hard. All I have to do is fold clothes and stuff.

"You really want to work? I was hoping you'd resist a bit. Then again you'd probably get fired in the first few hours" she said. In a turn of events I grabbed Haruhi and dragged her along.

I entered Kanata's shop along with Haruhi. I called out for Kanata who immediately showed up. Though reluctant about it at first she agreed to let me have a job. I think Haruhi may have something to do with this. I'd better watch my back. Haruhi had already left so Kanata told me to go after her.

I thought that she was leading me back to her house. Instead we found ourselves in the opposite direction. She ignored me when I asked where we were. Instead she climbed over the wall. I climbed over it after her and she motioned me to follow her further. We ended up on some steps leading down to a huge field. Gesturing me to sit down beside her she told me a story.

"A few years ago a strange event happened here. One night a girl and her accomplice broke into the school. Ordering her accomplice around, he ended up drawing weird patterns on the field for her. He told her that there would be interesting people, in a high school called North High. Of course the next day it caused quite a ruckus. She was reprimanded but she really didn't get much of a punishment" she told me as she looked up at the sky. I already knew about all that. Her accomplice was John Smith aka Kyon.

"Here's a question for you. Why do you think she did that?" she asked me.

"It's going a bit far but it was probably something like a giant tanzaku. She probably had a wish she really wanted to come true. Well even if it didn't come true I'm sure she was just subconsciously wishing for happiness. I know for sure she's found that. What she needs to learn is how to make others around her happy. If she can do that then she probably wouldn't need wishes or other incredible things to be happy" I answered. Whoa did I just have an epiphany for her?

She stared up at the starry sky above. She looks like she's seriously contemplating what I just said. She stood up after a little while. As she walked past me I saw that sparkle in her eyes when she's scheming something. I could've sworn there was also a smile on her face but it was too dark to see. She had nothing to say to me as she climbed over the wall. Knowing I'd get lost I followed after her.

I just knew that Haruhi going ahead without me was a bad idea. Rather than looking for her I decided to go straight to her house. I traced the way back to her house. I did this for a while running faster as I got more worried. Damn it I swear I'm stuck in a dimensional loop. Who knows maybe I did. I did feel really nauseous back there. I continued running until I ran into the fourth person today. The girl fell back and let out a pained whimper. Too bad I ended up on my ass too. I heard a familiar male voice telling me to watch it.

"Kyon, Mikuru! What are you two doing out here?" I asked as I got back on my feet.

"I happened to be walking in the same direction as Mikuru, so we decided to walk together" he said as he helped Mikuru back up onto her feet as well. They didn't exactly look happy to see me. I felt bad for getting Mikuru's uniform dirty. Wait how'd that happen? The road isn't dirty enough and there's no grass anywhere nearby. Where did these two just come back from?

"Do either of you happen to know where Haruhi's house is?" I asked both trying to take opportunity of the situation and to change the topic.

"I know Haruhi's house is pretty close to where I live but I don't know exactly. Shouldn't you know where her house is if you're staying there?" he said.

"Suzumiya has never told us where her house is" replied Mikuru.

"Guess I'll just have to keep searching then. Well goodnight and I'll see you both at school tomorrow!" I said as I continued. After running around for fifteen minutes and another bout with nausea I found Haruhi's house.

"Alan…" said a familiar voice. Guess I found Haruhi too…

"Late! Penalty!" she exclaimed.


	27. Chapter 26

Chapter 26: The Mystery of Itsuki Koizumi

The ringing of the gong didn't wake me up this morning. My recurring nightmare took care of that. "Stop…I was already awake before you even started using that thing" I said as I got up getting ready for my penalty; the ten lap run. I think I must've surprised Haruhi. The two of us began to jog together. Normally I'd complain but the fresh air made me feel better after that nightmare. It's almost always the same dream I have, so much so that it feels like its being burned into my mind as a memory. When we got back I felt far too relaxed to complain about the dismal breakfast. Soon it was time to head to school.

"Who in their right mind builds a school at the top of a hill?" I asked to nobody in particular. Haruhi said that it was to weed out weaklings. Kyon said that I'd get used to it so it doesn't really matter. I didn't quite like Kyon's response since it meant I have to overwork myself. Riku and Alice joined us, hopping off their bike. Riku handed me a bento. That's weird I have a lunch already. Don't tell me he's…

"You always seem so tired. I tend to have lots of extra time in the morning so I made breakfast for you. Maybe if I can get you to eat more in the morning you won't feel as tired. Although if it's that chronic you might be looking at something more serious" he said. Despite my better judgment I opened the bento and ate as we walked along. This is freaking amazing! I already feel more awake! Oh crap…I feel more awake. He even handed me a bottle of strawberry milk. Suffice it to say it was gone long before we reached school.

Being fifteen minutes too early, I thought back on the events of the last few days. As far as I can tell somehow I went from Pearson International Airport in Canada on the Reality side all the way to some random, nondescript city in Japan on the Fictional side. To add on top of that I have no memory of my old life. All I remember is that my name is Alan, I like strawberry milk and mysteries and though I'm lazy I would never ignore important duties. Too bad none of this is helping me. Maybe I should ask Kanata about my recurring nightmare. It's total circumstance to have the same dream once or twice but when it's the only dream I have there must be an underlying cause, just like Riku said.

As I looked in my desk there was a note along with two coins:

"_Charm for free strawberry milk" _

_Balance the two coins on top of each other_

_Chant 'Ritafuni kousoku lita' three times_

This is interesting. Childish though it may be I'll never pass up an opportunity for free milk, especially strawberry. I would spend the next five minutes trying to do the first step. I finally succeeded after swearing to God to share. Succeeding I said the chant three times before the two coins fell. Now I have to think about whom to share it with. Maybe I'll give some to Kyon…

The classes passed by pretty quickly and soon it was lunch. I can't believe Riku's breakfast is actually helping me to stay awake. Before leaving, Haruhi gave me enough money to buy some melon-pan from the cafeteria. Seriously what is melon-pan? Bread shaped like a melon or melon flavored bread? Well whatever. Food is food. I went to the cafeteria to buy it. I felt bad not having enough money to buy more strawberry milk. I walked around eating my melon-pan as I went. Every so often I'd find a few coins. Eventually I managed to get enough for the strawberry milk. Still gotta keep my promise to God lest misfortune befall me.

I found Kyon wandering about as well. I told him if he'd like I could share some of my milk with him. He denied my offer and instead told me to "…go share it with Itsuki or something." Well I haven't had much of a chance to talk with the esper. Maybe I will go find him. After walking around I found Itsuki, wandering around as well.

"Ah, Alan. Good to see you. So what brings you to this part of the school?" he asked.

"Just strolling. Mind if I join you?" I asked back.

"Not at all" he replied as we headed for a table. As we walked there we ran into Tsuruya. She said she was looking for Mikuru so they could decide where to eat out for dinner. Ah the benefits of being rich…Sparing a few moments she asked us how Mikuru was doing in the Brigade. We would learn that they used to walk home together. I felt kinda bad for Tsuruya. Maybe she should ask Haruhi to join. After that she bid us a cheerful farewell. She really is a lot like Haruhi but a lot more carefree and happy.

We got into a conversation about Tsuruya. We both agreed that she would do well in whatever club she decided to join. Itsuki noted that her charisma was contagious like Haruhi's. I added that at least she doesn't search for aliens, time travelers and espers. Then I noted that maybe the Brigade may not be the best club for Tsuruya. There really isn't anything to do in the clubroom. If he wasn't perpetually smiling I'm sure he'd have frowned at that comment. Recovering from a possible awkward moment I said that the mystery hunts are pretty fun and there are the rare Brigade field trips. But no one ever finds anything interesting.

"But what if we do discover a mystery, say something like an esper?" asked Itsuki. He made me realize that I had finished half of the milk I intended on sharing.

Giving him the rest of the milk I said "You Koizumi…_are_ a mystery." He gave me a sincere smile. I only told him the truth. He's an esper and therefore a mystery. I guess he's just happy I acknowledged the existence of mysteries. And why not. I'm a slider from Reality anyway.

Our next class was P.E. This used to be enjoyable till they added 'education' after 'physical'. Not it's just tiring and, more often than not, painful. It would seem today we're learning field hockey. We were split up into teams. As usual Haruhi gets the juggernauts Riku and Alice on her team. What the hell, Kyon sold me out again! Our team had everyone who was already exhausted from the drills. Wearing only a thin amount of padding and armed with a few minutes of experience I prepared for the royal ass kicking Haruhi's team was gonna give us.

I watched as Haruhi's team huddled together, probably discussing strategies and formations. I looked at my own team. We weren't in good shape. Kunikida, who did alright during the drills, was tired and would probably be incapable of putting up a decent defense. I just shook my head as I saw Taniguchi holding the stick the wrong way. If I'm really from Canada I'm sure to have some memories of hockey, maybe even skill.

Our team couldn't even do anything. Haruhi scored their first goal, weaving through our tired defenses. Riku scored the next one, using his inhuman strength and speed to tear through our weak defenses. Alice scored the one after that, despite being their team's goalie (seriously, wtf). Even Kyon managed to score. At the very least I managed to score too. Although the sight of Alice blocking my other slap shots without even blinking was pretty unnerving. Going in for the last goal Haruhi tackled me with bone crunching force. With that the game ended.

The sad thing was that didn't even take long. With ten minutes to spare the winners got free time while the losers did extra laps and drills. Showing some sympathy for my injury I was tasked with cleaning up the equipment. Carrying the equipment back to gym storage something ran into me. As I fell I knocked down pretty much everything in the storage room. Recovering before me, a girl helped me up.

"I'm sorry about that. I wasn't expecting to run into someone out here" she said. I went over to the door which somehow became locked in all the commotion.

"Well it seems like we're both stuck here. I'm Alan by the way" I said to her.

"I'm Itsuki Koizumi" she said. Itsuki? Well I have to say they do look quite alike. Hell even their personalities are the same. I'm pretty sure Itsuki doesn't have a twin sister at this school though…

"Really? I happen to know a guy named Itsuki" I replied.

"I see" she said as if she realized something. I tried to ask her what she just thought of. Instead she just said how cliché it is for a guy and a girl to get locked in a storage room together. All of a sudden she asked "What would it be like if there was a parallel world where your gender was swapped?"

"It'd be kind of interesting. But only a few things would change in your life. It's just a parallel world with a twist" I replied. She simply nodded in agreement. Much to our relief the door opened. As it did, I thought I saw Fuuko run into the school. Taking my attention off of Itsuko (my name for the girl I just met) I was surprised to find she had disappeared. As I got out of the room I laughed at our brief conversation. Could you imagine Itsuki being a magical girl?

The club was surprisingly short on members. It was just Haruhi, Kyon, Yuki, Alice and me. If I remember correctly Mikuru is eating out with Tsuruya. That would still leave Itsuki and Riku unaccounted for. I wonder what they could be up to. Kyon was busy studying and Alice…was sketching. She was drawing all the Brigade members present in the opposite gender. Why does this feel like foreshadowing? Seeing that the both of them were busy I went over to Yuki. She was reading a book on paranormal phenomenon from around the world. It seemed interesting so I started reading behind Yuki. Every so often I'd voice my opinions about the book's contents. She answered me every time but in words I cannot even begin to fathom. Seeing my interest I think she actually slowed down to match my reading speed. As we all left after club was over she gave me the book.

Haruhi doesn't believe that my route will get me to Kanata's faster than hers. And she was right. I'd gotten myself lost and my start time was coming up fast. However I was still hungry so I went into the convenience store to get some milk. Sadly there was no strawberry milk so I settled for the chocolate milk. As I went to pay for my milk I noticed everything the store had ceased moving. Instinctively I looked towards the door. It had been replaced by a concrete wall. As if to add to it all, all the lights turned off. It didn't take me long to adjust to the darkness just in time to see a fleeting shadow. As it got closer her face was lit up by the register's monitor. Oh thank god it's Yuki. She'll know how to fix this.

"Yuki is there a hostile interface here or-" I stopped and watched as her hand turned into an energy sword. Oh shi-

I instinctively ducked as she thrust her sword at me. Thank you FPS games! She hit the register behind me, sending coins flying about. I cried out "What the hell are you doing?"

Everything in the store was sliced in half under the flurry of slashes Yuki was doling out. I did my best to try dodging but everything I tried to use as cover was simply cut down to size. I pled with her "Stop! At least tell me what I did!"

"You are a hindrance. Everyone will benefit from your death" she coldly replied. I continued reasoning with her to no avail. In an attempt to try and prevent me from ducking behind cover she turned the store into a desert. I guess the store must have been a façade. Crap I walked right into her trap. From what I know about Yuki, trying to use the Object and World Card Saya gave me would be useless. She altered my data, making me feel heavier. As she went in for the killing blow, I picked up the book she had lent me to use as a shield. I was expecting her sword to cut me clean in half. Instead she stopped. Her hand turned back to normal. Am I safe?

"I shall let you live. In return please do not cause anymore confusion for Suzumiya" she said.

I asked back "Confusion? What do you mean?"

"I am unsure how to describe it. It is data similar to the error that caused me to recreate the world last December" she tried to explain.

"I'm confusing Haruhi's emotions? How?" I asked back. If I remember that event properly, the alteration was caused by Yuki's emotions. Since she never answered me back I assume that means she either can't explain or doesn't understand. "Alright. I'll watch it then. Just promise not to try and kill me next time" I said to her.

"Affirmative" she replied as she changed the setting from a desert to the front of Kanata's shop.

What kind of emotional confusion could I be causing Haruhi? Wait don't tell me it's…


	28. Chapter 27

Chapter 27: The Arrival of Kyonko-chan

I entered Kanata's store right on time. She welcomed me in and asked me to help fold the clothes and clean up. I was surprised to see Riku working here. So that's where he went today.

"Riku here told me about your slider power" Kanata said to me as I was folding some of the outfits. "I think I may have an idea what it is. A long time ago people from the Real World could travel to and from the Fictional World. They achieved this using a device known as the Tower of Babylon. However somebody destroyed it. Its destruction created division amongst the once united people frustrated over losing something that took them centuries to create. Not everyone from the Real World managed to make it back though. Eventually most of them died off. A trio of survivors managed to survive indefinitely using their newfound powers. There's not much info available on the other two but the one people feared most back then was the one wielding a power known as Void. Using the knowledge that everything in this world is fiction, they can make it so that they can deny the existence of anything thus creating an empty void in its place."

I was afraid. My power is just like Haruhi's; far too dangerous to simply mess around with. With one wrong thought I could accidently destroy this world. I began to despair. How many times have I denied the existence of some of the people in this world? Maybe that's what happened to Itsuki. Kanata asked to clean out the storeroom as I finished cleaning the store.

When I entered the room it was an absolute mess. I couldn't stop thinking about the power I might possess. So many thoughts kept running through my mind, most of them negative. I tried tidying the room but strangely enough it kept getting messier. This only added to my frustration and it got even messier. Alright let's calm down. She said that Void _might_ be my power. It isn't certain yet. I shouldn't worry about that. After all I kept denying the existence of so many people here and none of them have been removed from existence. Maybe Itsuki had something to do after school as well. He does tend to have an unsteady schedule with regards to his 'work'. I tried to fix the room one more time. I was able to quickly tidy it, much faster than even I expected. I went back to Kanata when I finished.

"It's difficult to clean it when you're frustrated, isn't it?" she said to me. I nodded. I didn't even notice that before.

"That room is a space I created to determine one's mental state. Negative and chaotic thoughts tend to cause the room to get messier even without you doing anything. Alternatively calming your thoughts or looking on the bright side causes it to get tidier to the point where someone can clean it without lifting a finger" she explained. So that was to get my mind off things. That was a clever ploy, Kanata.

"Remember even if you do have Void it all comes down to your mental state to use it. If you learn to keep your mind clear of unnecessary thoughts and focus on the task at hand it can be quite a powerful ability" she said to comfort me. After that she told me that I could use that room whenever I want before she said I could go home.

As I was about to leave Riku came up to me bringing a package with him. He said that Haruhi mentioned to him that she would have to go grocery shopping to make dinner. He said that he made it using a skill derived off his slider ability. If it's something Riku made it has to be good. He added a large bottle of strawberry milk to it.

"My slider ability is very similar to the Void. If it comes time to learn how to use it, come to me and I'll do my utmost to help you learn how to use it" he said as he bid me farewell. It's odd how Riku seems to always be helping me. I wonder what his reason for it is. As I left the store I found Haruhi waiting for me outside. I told her that Riku gave us dinner. She looked at it and drooled. So she's tasted his cooking before.

Thankfully this time I was able to keep Haruhi in my line of sight constantly, preventing myself from getting lost. As we headed to her shortcut she grabbed my free hand. I blushed thinking back on the 'confusion' I was causing her. I honestly don't have those feelings for Haruhi. She does however vividly remind me of someone I fell in love with back on the Reality side. We walked through her dimly lit shortcut.

"Hey, Haruhi. Have you ever fallen in love with someone?" I asked although I probably already knew her answer even if she didn't say it.

"Of course not! Love is just a form of mental illness. It causes people to do stupid, reckless, unreasonable things!" she yelled out in response. She does realize she just listed off everything she does _on a daily basis_. So I guess she really does have those kinds of feelings for Kyon…

"Love for all its bad more than makes up for it with all the good it is capable of causing" I said offering my opinion. Thankfully Haruhi couldn't see my face because I could feel tears running down my face. More of my memories being unlocked, I suppose.

Ahead of us was the street I recognized as Haruhi's. As we exited we found a girl unconscious on the ground. She was wearing a North High uniform. Haruhi was about to call 911 when the girl stirred.

"Food…" she weakly said as she reached out towards the meal Riku made. You've got to be kidding me…she just passed out from hunger? Well at least that is pretty easy to fix. Haruhi ordered me to carry her back to her house so we could feed her. I was planning on helping her even without you ordering me around.

We gave her a sizeable serving of Riku's baked pasta and a glass of strawberry milk. As she ate and drank she began to feel better. Afterwards Haruhi let her take a shower and get changed. Haruhi's clothes were pretty loose on her being smaller than Haruhi (in more ways than one…). When she was all done she introduced herself.

"I'm Kyonko. I'm a student at North High" she said introducing herself. Kyonko? That sounds oddly like Kyon. Am I just imagining things or are the members of the SOS Brigade getting genderbent? Nah that's not it. Alice's sketches from before are just messing with me.

"I haven't seen you around before. What class are you in Kyonko-chan?" asked Haruhi. I haven't seen her around either. Then again I'm still pretty new so that's no surprise.

"Class 2-5 with Okabe-sensei for homeroom" she responded. Ok, something is definitely up. If she was in any other class than 2-5 or 2-9 I could believe something isn't wrong. But I'm sure both me and Haruhi are in agreement when we say we definitely haven't met her before. I'm pretty sure Haruhi would've inducted her into the Brigade for being the epitome of a moe loli. Haruhi took me aside to speak with me privately.

"I think she may be an agent on a secret mission" she suggested. I'm not so sure about that but she's definitely not just anybody. "See if you can't coax out of her what she's up to" ordered Haruhi. I was planning to anyway. I walked back to the living room. Haruhi 'excused' herself and went to bed when in reality she was actually hiding, eavesdropping on us.

"I'm pretty sure neither of us has met before" I told her.

"Well you're always sleeping and Haruhi doesn't care" she said. That's true I suppose. I wonder if Haruhi is fuming right now.

"So then why were you passed out on the road?" I asked her. I'd love to hear her excuse.

"I woke up late and didn't get to have breakfast. Then in my rush to get to school I forgot my lunch. And then club ran late. I was on my way home when I passed out" she explained. Wow that was a pretty decent attempt. She's obviously lying though. I'm always tired and starving and even I don't pass out. Anyways a person can go for days without food as long as water is available, which it was. Maybe she's related to Itsuko's sudden appearance.

"What if I told you Haruki could warp reality, Yuuki was an alien, Mitsuru was a time traveler and Itsuko was an esper?" I asked her. I'm sure even if she lies I can get some reaction from her. She then got up off the couch, cushion in hand. Walking over to the stairs she pelted Haruhi with the cushion.

"God, you and Haruki are insufferable! Grow up and quit listening in on other people!" she yelled out at Haruhi. It did what she wanted it to do. Haruhi said that she and Kyon should quit trying to ruin her fun as she stormed off. Kyonko came back downstairs and sat in front of me.

Continuing from before she added "Then I'd say you forgot Rika is a slider. Anyway that's all I'm saying for now. Night."

Rika? No way, I was right!


	29. Chapter 28

Chapter 28: The Surprise of Alan Kurayami

Surprisingly enough I didn't wake up this morning to either my nightmare or the gong. Rather it was Kyonko and Haruhi yelling at the top of their lungs. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one they woke up. Obviously the two of them are at odds with each other. But with what now? I walked out into the hallway where they were arguing. I think I shall forever burn this image unto my mind…

"What're you doing you pervert?" both of them yelled at me. The two of them punched me with all their might. Lovely, I just took a dual Falcon Punch to the face… I went downstairs to fish out some ice from the fridge. Well at least they didn't break my nose. But they did give me a black eye…It should come as no surprise that Haruhi doubled my penalty. After the two of them finished showering they ran along with me. That's weird…these runs are getting less tiring every time. Thinking on it now, why _did_ they shower before going out for a run? Guess I'll have to wait longer than usual for my turn.

As we walked to school I was surprised that Kyon wasn't around. He doesn't seem like the type to get sick much. The two of them are still at it. Geez what are they arguing about now? Maybe I can ask Riku who she is when…she passes by. I watched as Rika, not Riku, biked up the hill with Alice in tow. Ok, something is seriously wrong here. Kyon is nowhere to be found and in his place Kyonko appears. Instead of Riku being the one biking, it's Rika. Is everyone starting to get gender-flipped? But if that's the case then why are Haruhi and Alice still the same? I'll need to find a few more people to confirm my theory…

The three of us entered our class. Sure enough Kyonko sat where Kyon sits and Rika where Riku does. I'm sure even Haruhi must have noticed this. Greeting her good morning, I guess even Haruhi is oblivious. Confirming that, she started talking to Kyonko as if she were Kyon himself. What the hell…you were just acknowledging her as a separate entity from Kyon a few minutes ago. The idea of Haruhi having a romantic interest in Kyonko was…Gah must keep thoughts appropriate! Come to think of it that might apply to Rika and Alice too. If I'm right the only other gender-flipped member should be Itsuki or rather Itsuko now.

The arrival of lunch gave me an opportunity to check this. Sure enough as I entered class 2-9 all the esper males were fawning over Itsuko. Can't blame them…Itsuko is as good looking as her male- Ok…let's stop that train of thought there. That leaves Yuki and Mikuru. Going to the third years' hallway I saw Mikuru and Tsuruya having lunch together. Mikuru: check. Next I dashed over to the clubroom where Yuki was bound to be reading. Opening the door I saw her quietly reading by the window. Yuki: check. But before I go…

"Hey Yuki. Have you noticed any weird data anomalies caused by Haruhi?" I asked.

"No" was all she said. Wait Kyonko mentioned something about a 'Haruki'. Maybe what's happening isn't a gender-flip but rather our members are swapping. But if Kyonko is talking to Haruhi like that then that means neither of our sides are noticing this. And no doubt Haruki is no exception to this. But why aren't I affected? Maybe sliders aren't affected by this. I left Yuki in the clubroom as she gave me what I guess was supposed to be a puzzled look.

I'll have to wait until work tonight to ask Kanata and the others. Or maybe not. When Fuuko appeared in my dreams she was wearing our uniform. If she's the same age as me then she should be in one of the second year classes. I rushed back to our hallway. I checked every second year class until I found her. She was surprised as I took her by the hand and went outside her classroom.

"Fuuko has Haruhi always hung around Kyonko?" I asked her.

"Fuuko thinks you're oblivious. Of course Haruhi hangs out with Kyonko. Kyonko is the reason for Haruhi's mental stability" she said to me. Great that means the sliders are oblivious to all this too. I'll ask Alice just to make sure my theory is right. I headed back to our class as lunch ended. Crap with all these things going on I forgot to eat lunch. I headed back to my desk feeling hungry.

"Here take this. Eat it before our class starts" Rika said to me as she gave me a sandwich. I quickly ate it all while savoring its tasty goodness. I wonder how Riku and Rika just miraculously pull things out of thin air. I guess I'll have to wait until club to ask Alice. I had to patiently wait until school was over before I could finally ask Alice.

"Alice is Rika your girlfriend?" I asked her. Please say no…although if you say yes… Gah, not again! Back sinful thoughts, BACK!

"Of course. This country seems to be quite open to these kinds of relationships. I never had this freedom back in my time and world…Did we never tell you of our relationship?" she said before walking off with Rika, the two of them holding hands. Well there goes the last person who can help me out. Guess I'll just have to get used to this until I figure out what to do. Better head to the clubroom.

I was surprised to find the clubroom's door locked. If it's what I think is happening in there then that's probably why. I wonder what kind of outfit everyone is gonna wear. I went in after Haruhi said I could enter. I was in for quite the treat…Rika was wearing a black cheongsam with red floral print on it. Alice was wearing the gothic Lolita outfit I bought a few days ago. Itsuko was dressed as a magical girl. Yuki as always was dressed in her uniform. I'm not complaining with Mikuru wearing her usual maid outfit. And finally Haruhi was dressed in her black bunny suit. Now that I have taken the time to calmly describe them all I shall proceed to have an epic nosebleed moment.

"Don't think you're exempted!" Haruhi yelled out to me as the other girls left the room. Oh hell no, you're not gonna get me to cosplay too!

After being mentally scarred by Haruhi I asked her "Who the hell am I even cosplaying anyway?"

"Train Heartnet! When I saw him I couldn't help but think how awesome it'd be if you dressed up like him" she replied. "You'll have to wear that until we get home. Consider it a bonus penalty for looking at Kyonko and I naked this morning!" she added. Bit-!

I felt so embarrassed to have to go and work like this. On the plus side at least some cute fangirls asked me if they could get a picture with me. Does this Train Heartnet guy have a large following? A few photo shoots later I arrived at Kanata's shop. When I opened the door I saw Saya and greeted her.

"Train? How'd you get here? And better yet how can you see me?" she asked. Wait Saya knows Train? Hmm maybe I should check out this manga and anime after all…

"Um, it's me Saya, Alan. Sorry to burst your bubble" I said as she realized her mistake.

"I always knew you looked like him. I just never realized how much…" she remarked. Well I better get to work. Maybe if I'm lucky those fangirls will buy some of Kanata's outfits and I'll get a raise for attracting customers. Well that's not gonna happen…but I can dream right?

I wonder if Kyonko will go back home tonight…


	30. Chapter 29

Chapter 29: The Solution of Rika Furude

Here we go. If this doesn't work, I'm on my own.

"Kanata, have you noticed anything weird?" I said pointing to Rika who was helping some customers.

"If by weird you mean Rika, then yes" she replied. Yes! Salvation is at hand! "So then you've noticed everyone's obliviousness to all this as well?"

"More like I'm the only one. Not even Saya, Fuuko and Alice were immune" I noted.

"Well in your case Void is probably negating Haruki's power. As for me I'm not sure. Though I'm sure you're not complaining" reasoned Katana. Oh you're right by the way, I'm not complaining.

"Although it's Riku's case that I'm curious about. I've heard him refer to a 'Haruhi lookalike'. While I'm sure it isn't Haruhi, it begs the question: was she the source of Haruhi's powers or simply her predecessor?" mulled Kanata. I wonder if she's the same girl I dream about; the one whom I had fallen in love with back in my old life. But what does she have to do with Haruhi or the ability to warp reality? I guess that's a mystery I'll try to get answers to later. For now I should focus on the task at hand.

"So do you have any idea how we can restore this?" I asked her.

"Not anything that doesn't involve sliding. As you know by now that would be impossible for any of us. Barring Haruhi and Haruki of course," she replied, adding, "And no, DON'T try to enlist Haruhi's help. There's no telling what repercussions that may have." Well there goes my non-sliding plan. Although I wonder…Maybe I should ask what Kanata thinks first.

"What about asking Rika? I haven't done that yet. For all we know she might know what's going on" I said offering a possible suggestion to Kanata.

"Hmm that may work. We have nothing to lose if you ask her" agreed Kanata. She then walked over to Rika. Taking charge of the customers she was dealing with, she told her to come talk to me.

"Kanata said you needed something of me?" she said to me.

"Rika, are you really Alice's girlfriend?" I asked her.

"Yes. But it's not of my own volition. The feelings I have for her are borrowed from Riku. To be honest it puts me in a rather awkward situation with Alice. I _know_ that I love her, but I _feel_ I don't. Being around you confirms that…" she said as she averted her eyes from me, blushing. Wait, was that supposed to be a confession?

Giving a timid laugh she added "And no worry not, these feelings are mine and mine alone. I'm sure the idea of Riku having those kinds of feelings towards you would be disconcerting" Yeah it would be just a touch disconcerting for me.

"So then you'd be willing to help me try and solve all this?" I asked her.

"Of course. My only regret in helping you is our eventual separation" she said blushing once more. The idea of dating Riku's female counterpart was oddly fine with me. But I can't help but feel guilty when I think of dating her. How madly did I fall in love with that other girl back home?

"So do you have any idea what caused all this in the first place?" I asked her.

"Since these two worlds are parallels as you might guess Haruki has feelings for Kyonko. Haruki's constant abuse of Mitsuru eventually built up until Kyonko lashed out at him. Let's just say her choice of words were not exactly the best" explained Rika. Well that explains why Haruhi, Yuki and Mikuru are still around. So how exactly do we get Haruki to believe that he holds feelings for Kyonko and Kyonko alone?

"So how exactly do we get Haruki to believe that he likes Kyonko?" I asked her.

"Strangely enough I seem to have a link with Riku. Since he too is probably trying to solve the situation I'm sure he could use this knowledge. After that what he chooses to do is up to him" she said explaining her plan. That's good to hear. I'm sure Riku can find a way to fix all this. Although after what I've seen today, I'll miss the fanservice. And Rika.

"Great. Should I tell Kanata everything will be taken care of?" I asked her. She nodded saying that she knows Kanata will agree. Good all I got to do now is wait it out. I went over to Kanata as she finished giving the customers' purchases. I explained to her everything Rika said to me after which she agreed it would be the best course of action. You hold Riku in high regards, don't you?

After finishing a few more of my duties at the store I headed home. I wonder if Kyonko will continue staying at Haruhi's house. As I approached the door to Haruhi's house I heard my answer.

"…damn it! I don't care anymore!" I heard Kyonko yelling at Haruhi. They're fighting again? I thought they were on friendly speaking terms? If she snaps she might hurt Haruhi. Better step in and make sure.

Whoa…wasn't expecting that. Kyonko was atop Haruhi as she gave her a passionate kiss. I could possibly enjoy this if my mind wasn't otherwise busy thinking up of all the penalties Haruhi was going to give me. I can just back out right now. Kyonko is in the way so I'm sure Haruhi can't see me right now…I hope.

"Penalty!" I heard Haruhi yell out at me as Kyonko got off her. Crap, so close… Well it can't possibly be worse than this morning's penalty can it? Suffice it to say dinner was much more quiet than usual. Kyonko's impulsiveness is actually keeping Haruhi pretty quiet. I wonder if Kyon will have a memory of this…Eventually after a while we all went to sleep. Better get ready for my ten lap jog tomorrow.

Feeling much more awake from our morning run I was surprisingly keeping pace with Haruhi and Kyonko. Still in shock from yesterday Haruhi? I wonder when Rika will get here. I'm curious to see how the plan turned out.

"Morning everyone. Do you mind if I talk to Alan privately?" she said to everyone. After giving her puzzled looks everyone agreed and went on ahead.

"Did it work?" I asked her.

"Yes. Riku should finish by the time you go to work today. If it turns out well, Kyonko shouldn't be at Haruhi's house tonight" she responded. Well that didn't take long at all. Riku really is productive. Though I do wonder what the hell Riku could've said or done to resolve it so quickly.

Class once again flew by without me getting exhausted. That's weird considering Rika never gave me any breakfast this morning. Same thing with Haruhi's morning jog. What did I do in my old life exactly? I guess even my body is remembering things from my old life.

Club on the other hand passed by quite slowly. Not that I mind. Although I wish everyone was wearing costumes again. Well I'll just enjoy what I can. By the time I arrive at work everything should be back to normal. Let's see if Alice's sketches foretell anymore strange happenings. Is that supposed to be Rika in deep red armor? And what's that floating pink ball of light supposed to be?

"Hey, Alice. What's that supposed to be?" I asked her pointing at her sketch.

"Remember, Rika has that weird World Object with her. Supposedly that is how she looks like when she uses it. She also said that there is sometimes a floating pink ball of light that follows her around. She does not know much about either of them. She has never been put into a position to use her World Object."

Keeping this in mind I went to work when club finished. Entering the shop I was relieved to see Riku back again.

"Did you know what was happening all this time?" I asked him.

"Yes, I hope I don't go back there under the circumstances I encountered…" he mulled over and then giving a slight terrified shudder. Just what in the hell happened over there? Don't tell me Haruki- Yeah he probably did. I mean what can possibly scare a Slider like Riku? Unlike you I've been granted _multiple_ glimpses of what Heaven has to offer.

The two of us continued working talking about what had happened to us during the weird events that have transpired. After hearing what happened to him I just realized that he ended up in the opposite situation that I was in. With Haruki. Yeah not exactly a glimpse of Heaven there. Unless yaoi fans heard this. In that case their fandom must've rejoiced over what happened over there. But if there were no other sliders besides Rika, I wonder who Riku ended up being paired with. Actually on second thought I don't really want to know…

We had ended up staying late finishing things up. By the time I headed home there were no sources of illumination other than the occasional streetlights. Heading through the shortcut wasn't much fun considering it was pitch black. As I exited and started walking towards Haruhi's house I was stopped. If this thing is a Demon it definitely looks like one. Red skin: check. Huge horns: check. Forked tail: check. Better get my Object ready.

Just as the Demon was about to attack me, a red blur sped in front of me. Pulling out an energy sword the same as Riku's it slashed it seven times in quick succession, the last one vaporizing it with a wave of red light. When it was done it stood with its back to me. Wait I've seen this before…

"Rika…?" I called out to her.

"Ware wa Messiah nari!" she yelled out after which she laughed evilly. Turning around her long black hair whipped out from her helmet, turning a pale blonde. She stared at me, her eyes glowing a malicious red. Well…I'm pretty sure I can say…

"Oh crap…"


	31. Chapter 30

Chapter 30: The Rampage of Omega Rika

I jumped back, avoiding her as she dashed towards me while slashing. I have to move out of here. The street is narrow and its way too close to houses. If she has some kind of ranged attack, she'll probably hit one of the houses. I started running away, hearing her evil laugh as I got further away. Where can I go? I need a wide open space, somewhere where her attacks won't hit anywhere people are. Wait…that school Haruhi brought me to. What was it called? Right, East Junior High. The quad there should be more than big enough. All I got to do now is call somebody to help me.

I pulled out my cellphone as I was running. Just as I was about to dial Riku's number an energy bullet shot it out of my hand. Oh great, she has a gun too? I looked up at one of the roofs. Go figure, she's looking down at me, her glowing red eyes contrasted against the cloudy night sky. As I kept running I watched as she was roof hopping, laughing as she went. What the hell happened to you that you would do this?

After I jumped over East Junior High's wall I watched in terror as she made a path through it, by blasting it with that red energy wave. She followed me to the middle of the quad where I stopped and turned around, standing my ground.

"Rika, why are you doing this?" I called out to her.

Her voice distorted she responded "Lord Weil demands the retirement of all Humans and Reploids. You have been targeted for retirement. Prepare to die." Oh great she's gone Ax Crazy. Lord Weil? 'Retirement'? Reploids? What the hell is she going on about exactly? Now I know what Kyon must've felt like when Ryoko wanted to kill him. I barely dodged the two large energy bullets and an electric wave that came towards me. Well at least I was right to bring her here. I looked over to where the shots impacted. Two blast craters and a burnt slash mark was left behind.

Guess I have no choice. If I want to live beyond tonight I'm gonna have to fight her. Maybe if I'm lucky she'll snap out of it. I threw a fireball at her and it made a direct hit. She laughed it off and said "I am the Goddess of Destruction, the perfect war machine. I have laid waste to the world and its inhabitants. You think a measly fireball can damage me?" Laid waste to the world and its people? I don't remember anything like that ever being covered in History, Japanese or otherwise. And did she just call herself a machine?

I continued throwing more fireballs at her. Unfortunately she either evaded them or they did nothing to her. Damn…what the hell is possessing her? She shrugs off burns and explosions like they're nothing! Seemingly irritated by my attempts she started going on the attack again. All I kept seeing were her sword as she kept slashing at me and more of those huge energy bullets. "Cease running. Accept the fate your Goddess is giving you" she said to me. Yeah, I don't think I'll comply with that. She punched the ground and several medium energy bullets went flying out, striking everything around her. This is insane! She moves and attacks at inhuman speeds! On top of that all of her attacks seem to be made to inflict as much insane amounts of damage conceivable. It's like whatever possessed her is overkill incarnate! Oh man…whoever can help me, help me!

She jumped towards me low. Oh great she's about to finish me off like that Demon. I closed my eyes as I heard her sword swinging and the boom that accompanies her sword smash (my name for the red energy wave). When I opened my eyes Yuki was standing in front of me. Please don't try to kill me too!

"Unidentified data entity is currently synchronized with the girl. Shall I commence termination of target?" she said asking me.

"I will not make the same mistake I made centuries ago by underestimating an inferior machine. Shifting retirement priority to new combatant. Prepare to be retired with extreme prejudice" Rika said in her distorted voice.

"No! Try to…I dunno, get rid of whatever is possessing her" I suggested to Yuki. She began to speak rapidly as she countered Rika's relentless assaults.

"Purge is ineffective. Enemy data entity is running counterattack software that is preventing purge attempts" she said with, I swear, a hint of annoyance. What kind of machine can go and stop an interface's data manipulation capabilities? "Termination is the only viable option left. Do you have further suggestions before I attempt to do so?" she asked me once more. I suggested calling Riku. After more rapid speaking I heard a sonic boom overhead. Well…that was fast.

Even Rika seemed to have trouble blocking Riku's energy swords as he dove down from the sky. Yuki attacked Rika while she was busy and managed to destroy a good portion of her helmet. Pushing Riku away and blasting Yuki, she punched the ground again as several pillars of light made an impenetrable wall around her. When it dispersed the damage was repaired and her armor shone like it was brand new. You're kidding me…Both Riku and Yuki came in attacking her with their swords. This would be pretty freaking epic if it didn't mean Rika may die.

"Omega, still living up to your reputation as the God of Destruction I see" Riku said to her.

"Omega Rika to be precise. And it's Goddess you oblivious fool. In case you haven't noticed my Biomatch is a female" she snarked back. Man this Omega guy is just asking for it…

"Ange, commence purge of data corruption" ordered Riku.

"Commencing" she replied. Even with both Yuki and Riku, Rika is able to stand her ground. Am I making the two of them hold back because I don't want Rika to be hurt? The shields the two of them were using flickered as they were sent flying back by her sword smash. She cried out Overdrive and a pulsating deep red aura surrounded her. Where is that damn HUD thing Fuuko gave to me? As the holograms appeared I took a look at the stats Omega Rika had. All of them, barring defense capability, were insanely high. Not that she needs it with an invulnerable healing state. And she's level 100 to boot, compared to Riku's 75 and Yuki's 85.

"Purge unsuccessful. Man, this Omega guy is a pain! He's got some of the best counterattack software I've seen so far. It's even better than the ones TSAB uses!" remarked Ange. I have no idea what she's talking about but it doesn't sound too good…

"Stop!" cried out a mysterious female voice. A glowing pink orb of light came down towards Rika.

"You're a Cyber Elf? That's impossible, you're a human!" argued Omega.

"I cannot allow you to remain the way you are. You have caused enough destruction in the past. You have the body of a hero, it's about time you live up to the legend of the one whose body you have" said the orb. Rika jumped up to where she was and tried to attack her. Riku intercepted unleashing a double saber smash knocking back and stunning Rika. The orb flew over to her and entered her body. She let out a pained scream, first in her distorted voice then her normal one.

"What did you do to her?" I asked the orb angrily.

"I saved her and Omega from further corruption. Omega's original personality is a corrupted, unethical version of Zero's. I have wiped his personality clean in order to match that of his Biomatch. I only hope that he chooses to live as Zero did. But I wouldn't worry, both of them are safe now" she said.

"What the…? Where am I?" Rika and Omega asked in unison as she got back on her feet.

"Hey! You're finally talking! I'm Rika Furude. Nice to meet you…?" she said to Omega.

"Biometal Model O. It is nice to meet you as well Rika" he responded. The pink orb flew out of Rika much to her shock. Drifting in front of us all, the pink orb turned into a hologram. She was wearing a pink, futuristic outfit over which she wore a pink long coat. Her long blonde hair reached down past her knees. Her kind blue eyes hid a great deal of sadness. Over her head was a pink halo and on her back were three pairs of detached pink wings. Pink overload much? Man I thought Kyonko was a moe loli. This girl takes moe loli to eleven.

"I'm Dr. Ciel. Or rather I was when I was alive. You should know what kind of being I am, Riku" she said addressing Riku.

"You're like Rewrite, an ascended being. So then you've chosen Rika to Soul Synch with?" he asked her back.

"Correct. I believe she would be the best candidate for it. She reminds me of Zero….I guess my emotions biased my decision a bit" she said giving a cute embarrassed laugh.

"Quite frankly you should be called Rewrite. If what Ange just told me is correct, that's the power you use. So shouldn't you be able to appear as a physical being like Rewrite?" he asked her.

"I could. But this form gives me a lot of freedom. Anyways I would like to apologize for the trouble these two caused you all tonight," she said as she bowed her head in apology, "I was lax with my surveillance and I allowed such a corruption to take place. I assure you that such a thing won't happen again."

"It's fine. I'm just glad Rika is safe. Is there anyway she can go back? I'm sure Haruki will start raising hell if one of his Brigade members just disappears" I asked of her. As much as I would like Rika to hang around longer, her staying here will cause too many problems back in her world.

"Of course. Bypassing the barrier on this world is a simple enough task for someone like me. Simply have Riku ask if you want her to come back" said Ciel. Taking a bewildered Rika and Omega they disappeared through a dimensional doorway. Riku and Yuki looked at me as he said "So why didn't you call us?"

Why, you ask? My cellphone was shot out of my hand by an Ax Crazy Rika and Omega, roof hopping, while laughing like a madwoman/man. I'm sorry if I couldn't call.


	32. Chapter 31

Chapter 31: The Vacation of Alan Kurayami

Man, its freezing. Damn Haruhi and the Brigade. They left me back here to freeze to death. It might be freezing where they are but I'm pretty sure they're having a blast. They never did tell me where they went. For all I know they could be skiing on a ski resort on the Rocky Mountains in Canada. I wonder if I did that back in my old life. Feeling someone tap me on the shoulder, I turned around. It was Rika, Omega and Ciel. Thank you God! Wait when did Omega have a physical body? I hope he doesn't go Ax Crazy like he did this summer…

Rika handed me a bottle of warm strawberry milk. Ok, seriously…where in God's name do she and Riku miraculously get all these things in an instant? If that's an ability I can learn I'm all for it. Although I might end up like Fuuko, stuck in a milk sensory overload state with all the milk I could make.

"Feel like going skiing?" Rika asked me.

"I feel like I'm more of a snowboarder myself. But yeah, I'm up for that. Did you have somewhere in particular?" I asked her.

"I hear from Riku that the Brigade went to a ski resort on the Rocky Mountains in Canada. I can use Ciel's power to add us on their reservation list for their cabin. Just tell Haruhi it's a surprise when you get there. We'll even go with you" she replied grinning.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't misuse my power. But I agree. It's freezing _and_ boring. Even someone like me needs some R&R" noted Ciel.

"I'm unfamiliar with this activity. But surely it must be better than sitting around doing nothing" added Omega. Alright, it's decided then! We're all going to Canada! Although…what will I remember by going back to my home country? Will it be more painful memories?

"Alright then! Let's go!" exclaimed Rika. I wonder if I should ask her out while we're there. A cozy cabin nestled in the Rocky Mountains…that could be a romantic setting right? Then again there's Haruhi…Ah, screw it. She left me here to rot. I could care less what she thinks.

Before I could even finish blinking we were already there. I wonder what Riku meant when he called Ciel's power 'Rewrite'? Does he mean rewrite reality? The cabin was unusually luxurious. No doubt Tsuruya had some hand in this. Maybe even Riku. Haruhi aside, I'm pretty sure they're the only two who can get their hands on a place like this.

"Alan?" Haruhi exclaimed as she entered the door along with the rest of the Brigade. Everyone but Riku looked at me confused. I'm pretty sure he was busy facepalming himself knowing that Ciel used her power to bring us here.

"Surprise…?" I said trying to get my sudden arrival to make sense.

"Ah, I'm sorry. I didn't know there were supposed to be people coming. This cabin belongs to my family you see. I often rent it out to make some extra money" explained Ciel. Tsuruya caught on pretty quick but at least she didn't sell us out to Haruhi. I don't think Haruhi cared anyway. She seemed too mesmerized by Ciel's moe loliness (was that even a word…?). Next thing I know she'll take her and run back home. Come to think of it where did I even get that reference?

The curiosity didn't last long. Everyone, even me, was too enthralled with the fun we could have. We started be gearing up and heading to the slopes. Tsuruya had the presence of mind to rent out skis for everyone who came with her, except Haruhi and Yuki of course. Riku probably just pulled his snowboard out of thin air. No way would they have a snowboard like that for rent. Alice had a…sled? I asked her why she brought a sled to a ski resort.

"'For the Lulz' as I believe the expression goes" she said as she pulled it along behind her. Wasn't expecting that kind of answer from her…

Going up on the ski lift I could see Mikuru freaking out about how high up we were going. She immediately latched onto the closest person to her, namely Kyon. Oh how hot the inferno of jealousy must be burning in Haruhi right now. By the time we got off we were already a good distance up. Memories of my time I spent on the slopes started to come back to me. Well at least these were pleasant, if not sometimes hilarious, times. Getting ready to go down Haruhi announced that the last one down would get a penalty. Oh no way in hell am I getting a penalty during our Brigade vacation.

We all started down the slope at the same time. Naturally Haruhi was in the lead. Yuki, Riku and (wtf?) Alice followed close behind, leaving a cloud of fresh powder snow behind them. I followed behind the three of them with Rika, Ciel and Omega beside me. Omega just made skiing badass again…Everyone else was far behind us to the point where we lost sight of them after a while. I do actually hope they're alright…After an exhilarating ride down the slopes nearly all of us eventually made it to the bottom of the slope. That is except for Mikuru and Kyon…

"…I told you, my nickname really is Kyon" he said as he and four other girls were helping him bring Mikuru down the slope safely. She looks like she's about ready to pass out.

"…HARUHI-SAMA!" yelled out the token loli of their group. She looks _way_ too much like Kanata…Are other members of Kanata's family Sliders as well?

"See, Kyon! I told you that making that website was a good idea! The SOS Brigade's fame has spread beyond Nishinomiya!" she yelled out to Kyon exuberantly. The Computer Club President in desert cricket form says otherwise. And somehow I get the impression that these girls know the Brigade from something other than the website…

The blue haired girl pulled out an autograph book from her jacket. Hmm, this anime otaku comes prepared. From the looks of it she somehow got Mikuru's autograph while they were going _downhill_. Everyone in the Brigade except for Riku and Alice signed it. "That's weird. Are you two new characters or something? I haven't seen you before…" she asked the two of them. I don't blame her. As far as she's concerned Sliders don't exist canonically in the _Haruhi Suzumiya_ series. Not yet anyway…

"Yes, we just joined the Brigade this summer. I am Alice Pendragon. He is Riku Furude" she said to the girl. She looked just downright ecstatic.

"Awesome! I got previews of new, upcoming Brigade members!" she said to her group.

"They're just cosplayers, Konata. They aren't canon characters anyway. They're probably just cosplaying characters from a Haruhi fan fiction" noted a girl with purple hair and twin long ponytails. Well I just found their group's tsundere. As if the twin ponytails weren't a dead giveaway though…And did she just call that girl Konata?

"Your family name wouldn't happen to be Izumi, would it?" I asked the blue haired girl. No way in hell that her appearance is just a coincidence.

"Yep Konata Izumi am I. But how'd you know that?" she said. Wow…if this were an anime or manga she'd probably be a physical expy of her mother. On second thought this world is technically an anime, manga _and_ light novel series. Too bad these four are in the wrong one. And they don't even realize it!

"I know your mother" I said. In hindsight that probably wasn't the best choice of words…

"You can talk to spirits? You must be another new member of the Brigade! So many new characters…You three must be Sliders. They're the only faction that hasn't showed up yet" she contemplated. Surprisingly she's spot on. I bet you'd be even more excited if I told you there are more of us. Even your mother is a Slider. Wait, spirit? You mean Kanata is dead? I've been taking orders from a ghost…

The four of them hung out with us for the rest of the day. Konata introduced herself again to everyone else in the Brigade. The one with the long purple hair in twin ponytails was Kagami Hiiragi. The other girl with short purple hair was her twin, Tsukasa Hiiragi. And finally their group's moe mascot equivalent of Mikuru, Miyuki Takara. I bet Kanata is going to be happy knowing her daughter is doing just fine, if not a little odd. She probably knows all this already though. Oh and we all forgot about Mikuru…Enh, I'm sure Kyon is taking good care of her while she's out cold. Once again, poor choice of words…

Our fun on the slopes eventually ended. As night fell we all went back to 'Ciel's' cabin for a party. Haruhi and Konata just got along too well. Considering she's a Haruhi fangirl that shouldn't come as a surprise. At least everyone seems to be enjoying themselves. But I think I'm going to pass on the festivities. More memories just came back to me. This one probably explains my recurring nightmare. I quietly snuck out without anyone noticing. Knowing what I do now I didn't find it surprising that I got onto the roof sans ladder. I lay down on the soft snow and looked up at the clear sky. The Milky Way was clearly visible along with innumerable other stars.

"Ciel's power to rewrite reality might be limited but it's pretty handy. So what's got you down?" asked Rika in a gentle voice as she lay down next to me.

"You sure you don't want some Kleenexes?" I asked her before I started.

"Sure. But I don't think I'm going to be the one that needs it."


	33. Chapter 32

Chapter 32: The Story of Alan Kurayami

Back then I had become bored of the world, just like Haruhi and Kyon did. I lost all interest in pretty much everything. I would just skip class and nap somewhere. In particular I remember how that Friedrich guy used to piss me off so much. He was always trying to befriend me when all I wanted was to be left alone. It wasn't really much of a surprise when I ended up getting mixed up with the wrong crowd. I was hesitant at first about becoming part of that world as I remembered what had happened to my best friend Ken. But as time passed I became intoxicated by the rush street fighting gave me. It filled the void in my life where excitement and happiness should've existed. On top of that, it empowered me. No longer was I weak.

My infamy grew to the point where other people joined me. Eventually we formed a small time gang. Everyone had their own talents and skills to share with the group. Though we were just small time, our gang easily beat out more organized crime syndicates. That was when _she_ joined our group. Many of the members of our gang recognized her since most of them graduated from high school with her. They told me that she was a quiet anime otaku. She spent most of her time reading manga or writing fan fiction. She was hot but everyone just thought she was a loner or a freak. After that little exposition I realized why they were so surprised to see her.

That was when we started getting requests from local crime syndicates. We started out with robberies. We robbed everything from small convenience stores to the strongholds of several syndicates. Our infamy grew even further. It was her, Serenity Babel, which got us into assassinations. In fact it was her that drew first blood. She managed to capture the target we were assigned to kill. Rather than killing him off quick and mercifully, she 'toyed' around with him before killing him off. Everyone but me was mesmerized by her senseless violence. I might not have cared for the world but even I still had some morals intact. There's no need to cause someone unnecessary suffering.

That was when _he_ joined. The one everyone called the White Reaper. None of us ever saw his face. He was dressed up like Altair from Assassin Creed, except where he wore red, he wore teal. Even his hair was white. Well technically silver. The one thing that stood out about him was the massive scythe he carried around. He never spoke either. The guy really got on Serenity's nerves. Whereas she would mercilessly slaughter everyone that got in her way, he would simply incapacitate them. Never had I ever seen him use lethal force, somewhat odd considering he used a scythe. Rather he would just throw flashbangs and stun grenades at his targets then he would immobilize them with his scythe. He would bring about the division in our gang.

Then came that fateful request. We were to steal some documents from an infamous syndicate leader. In addition we were supposed to kill his daughter. We were told to kill anyone that got in our way. Thanks to Mole, our gang's recon guy, we had detailed layouts of the stronghold. Serenity planned out the attack. All that was left was to carry it out.

White Reaper was the first one in. He managed to knock out the guards and patrols without being seen. Then he cut the power to the security system so we could get in without tripping the alarm. Too bad one of the guards in a guard tower spotted all of us. That was when all hell broke loose. White Reaper and I took advantage of the situation and broke in. I wasn't a stranger to fighting against guards armed with handguns and apparently neither was White Reaper. The guys with the AK-47s and MP5s were a different story. White Reaper ended up taking care of nearly all of them since he had flashbangs and stun grenades to disorient them long enough to stop shooting. After a while we found our target. The woman guarding the documents was no challenge. I overpowered her and took the attaché case with the documents inside. Just as I turned around I saw her pull out a gun. I pulled out one of my throwing knives to throw at her when a little girl stood in front of her in a protective stance.

I still remember the words White Reaper said to me, one that would change my life for the better: "Will you kill the girl?" I put my throwing knife back. I may be a thief but I'm not a murderer. White Reaper went over to the little girl.

He knelt down to her so he was eye level as he patted her on the head and said "You're a brave little girl. Go find a hiding place with Mommy. The big, bad wolf is coming." The little girl took her mom with her and ran off. That was when Serenity and the others came in. Saying she was pissed was an understatement. She tried to take a shot at the little girl as she tried to flee. I stepped in taking the bullet for them. The next thing I knew White Reaper had grabbed me, throwing a flashbang and a white rose (his signature) as he jumped out the window with me. We could hear the sirens getting closer as he booked it as fast as he could, carrying me on his back. If we didn't piss off Serenity before, we sure as hell did now.

We stopped in a park. He laid me down on a bench where he bandaged my gunshot wound. I think we both knew we were going to have to go to a hospital. A girl approached us as White Reaper put pressure on my wound.

"You know the hospital is going to call the cops if they treat you for a gunshot wound. Come back to my place and I can get that fixed up for you" she offered. White Reaper just gave a nod in agreement. Guess we didn't really have a choice. White Reaper was about to carry me again when we heard a pair of beat cops walking through. He disappeared almost instantly as the girl got on top of me and started making out with me.

"Oh I'm sorry miss! Don't mean to interrupt you two but you both should go home right now. There's been an armed robbery nearby" said the oldest of the pair. She just said the typical 'Yeah, whatever' as the two walked off. As instantaneously as he disappeared, White Reaper reappeared and carried me again. With the girl leading the way we found our way to her house, or rather mansion.

She was the same age as me but she was already proficient in treating gunshot wounds. Suffice it to say I was in for a surprise when White Reaper pulled back his hood.

"You?" I yelled out in surprise. Unfortunately that made my wound hurt more.

"Surprised I could do all that? If you're wondering I took a few levels in badass as a child, to say the least. Never realized that Father's harsh physical training would come in so handy…" he said as he chuckled. Crouching Rich Guy, Hidden Badass much?

"Calm down. It was I that asked him to keep an eye out for you. And I would like to apologize for endangering you, Fried-kun" she said as she bowed in apology.

"No worries. We're practically family so just consider it an interest-free favor, Saki-chan" he replied. I didn't even realize that the two of them knew each other so well. But that would be my first encounter with Saki, the one who would help me find enjoyment out of even the simplest things in life.

Out of the crime game, the three of us became good friends. Together with the two of them I began to find enjoyment in life once more. Everything seemed fine again. We even befriended a girl named Luci, who due to her attitude towards everyone had gotten a bad reputation at school. Eventually I began to fall in love with Saki. I was annoyed with her constant enjoyment of life at first. But then I began to realize that that was the reason for my newfound happiness. I couldn't live without her. So I confessed to her under her favorite sakura tree. After that I thought that nothing could possibly go wrong.

I was mistaken. On a rainy day, as Saki and I were heading home, Serenity reappeared in my life. Restrained by members of her new gang, I was unable to stop her from killing Saki. Without Saki I knew my life would go back to the way it was. I'm sure it was just as hard for Friedrich, who arrived too late to stop it. That was the only time I've ever seen him totally lose it. By the end of it everyone that came along with Serenity, both old and new members, were sliced to ribbons. Friedrich chased after Serenity without much luck. All I could do was hold Saki's lifeless body as EMS arrived far too late.

Her family believed it would be in my best interest to leave Canada with Serenity on the loose. The only one left to comfort me was Luci. And even she was busy tending to Friedrich, who was put into a coma after taking a bullet to the head. I felt like moving away was probably for the best. I decided to head to Japan where Saki's family allowed me to stay in one of their homes there.

When I arrived at the airport I went to the bookstore to grab the ninth _Haruhi Suzumiya_ light novel. I had fallen in love with the series as it humorously mirrored my own tragic life. I never did get a chance to finish reading as I found myself here, in Haruhi's Japan.

By the time I finished, I just noticed that I was crying without restraint. I found myself in Rika's warm, comforting embrace.

"I'm not Saki. But I promise to love you as much as she did" Rika said to comfort me.

"All the more incentive to take down Serenity for me" I heard someone say below us. It was Riku who had been listening to my story the whole time. When I looked down I saw him crying as well. Linked with Friedrich's memories, he probably feels the despair of Friedrich's failure.

"We should head back in," Riku said as he wiped away his tears, "I'm sure Haruhi will notice that we've gone missing."

Before I forget…Happy Birthday Saki. This party is for you.


	34. Chapter 33

Chapter 33: The Training of Alan Kurayami

There were still a few days left in our winter holiday. Haruhi didn't pay much attention to me as she was busy preparing a Brigade activity for New Years. I ended up spending most of my time with Kanata at the shop. As I worked I told her about her daughter. She seemed surprised that her daughter and her friends could come into this world. They weren't Sliders as far as she knew and there's the barrier that seals this world.

"You've been a great help to us Sliders here. Would you like to get some formal Slider training?" Kanata offered to me. I probably should. I heard Kanata has allowed Rika to go to Celestia in order to become one. I think if the situation ever calls for it, better to be prepared than not. I agreed to her offer and she told me to wait at the shop after work.

When we were done Kanata had us start by running to Riku's house. She explained that it's good for Sliders to develop plenty of stamina, especially for long duration missions. The jog was even longer than Haruhi's penalty jogs. As we started heading towards the mountains, buildings and people became more and more scarce. Eventually we found ourselves running in a largely undeveloped area. The woods gave way to the wall lining the perimeter of Riku's house. As we entered the gate I noticed how startlingly similar it was to Friedrich's own home.

"Good evening. What brings you here at this hour?" asked Alice.

"Kanata made me come here for trai-" I said before I was cut off by Riku.

"En Garde!" he yelled out as he pulled out his twin energy swords. What the? I don't even have a sword!

I put on the Object I was given. Man I thought Rika and Omega were fast. At least I could see Rika as she moved. Riku practically disappears when he moves. When he reappeared I threw a fireball at him. That went about as well as when I threw it at Rika. Unfazed he charged at me and unleashed a blindingly fast sword combo. Next thing I knew I was up in the air as he kicked me down. Don't you think that was overboard for training?

"Get up! If you do not analyze the situation you are in quickly, chances are you will not live to see tomorrow!" he said to me. Yeah analysis is kinda hard to do when the one you're fighting moves that fast. Alright let's take stock of the situation. My fireballs are blocked by his barrier. If he has one then how did he get close enough to me to use his swords? There's no way his barrier would have a flaw like that…

As he sped towards me again I dodged his slash. Sure enough when I kicked him, it connected. What do you know? You can just walk through his barrier. Even on the ground he continued fighting. He quickly recovered as he did a spin kick using its momentum to get him upright. On top of his own experience, he has Friedrich's as well. And I know how that usually ends…

It was my turn to go on the offensive. With all the memories of my skills unlocked I was able to get in a few good hits. Too bad he seems used to taking this kind of punishment.

"Come on! My little sister kicks harder than you!" he taunted. Considering your status as resident badass that's actually believable. He seems to be getting too into this…

Attacking me again, I disarmed him of both of his swords. The two of us ended up getting into a fist fight. Missing his right hook I gave him an uppercut, knocking him on his ass. Does that mean I win?

"Haha, you're as good as Friedrich remembers! That's good considering your memory is more or less completely recovered now. With that level of skill, all you need is a more suitable Object. You're not that great of a ranged attacker anyway" he commented on our sparring match. You're not bad yourself considering your blows feel like a car crashing into someone. "If Friedrich remembers correctly, your preferred weapon is a katana. I'm sure when you become an official, full-fledged DSO Slider Kanata will have an Object lined up for you. For now you should continue to refine your skills. Let's move onto a more practical Slider skill: opening dimensional pathways."

He and Kanata took turns explaining it. From what I can understand the places you can 'slide' to are dependent on your knowledge of that particular world. The methodology seems to differ from Slider to Slider. For example, Riku opens a dimensional doorway by using his slider ability to create a stable pathway. He negates dimensional quakes by unleashing an equal but opposite pulse of his magic. Kanata's is different though. She uses the older dimensional Gate. This allows her to create multiple pathways to different worlds. The trade off is the amount of power it takes to access and activate the Gate realm. Whereas Riku's method lands him randomly, Kanata's is more accurate and can be 'aimed'.

After getting a few more extra details they asked me to create one. I tried funneling my 'power' into creating a dimensional doorway. The two of them agreed that with Void this would be the best method. Given a description of Kanata's world, Lucky Star, I focused on her description and created it. It was surprisingly easy. The door appeared before me as I saw Konata getting out of the bath…Oh, crap…Riku simply turned away blushing. Next thing I knew a tiny fist hit me with the force of a Maglev train. Not as epic as the Haruhi/Kyonko Dual Falcon Punch but it achieved the same effect.

"Don't you _dare_ eye my daughter like that!" she said in an angry, scolding tone. Riku wasn't kidding when he said the specific location in the world was random. With my eyes closed (I swear I wasn't looking Kanata!) I shut the doorway and made it disappear. Looking down at Kanata all I could see was her face turn beet red. God, why did you bless me with awesome suck?

Clearing his throat Riku said "I must ask you to collapse the doorway and remake another one should something like this happen. You should adhere to this barring a life and death situation."

"And _you_! Why were you looking at her even more lewdly than Alan?" she chastised Riku. Wait, he was?

"Wah~ Spare me! Blame it on Friedrich! He has a lolicon complex!" he replied cowering before Kanata. You're scared of _Kanata_? Well after that punch I don't blame you…Wait he does? He doesn't seem like the type…

"Don't ever let me catch you two doing something like that again…" she concluded. Too late. This is my second time. Third if you count it per girl. Best not to let her hear that. Heaven knows what kind of retribution would befall me.

Obviously flustered and angry over my successful screw up we decided to stop for tonight. Quite frankly that's probably for the best. Considering the beat down Riku _and_ Kanata gave me, I'd be lucky to get out of bed tomorrow morning. He invited us inside as he served us dinner. The food he makes is always top notch. Add on top of that the bottle of strawberry milk, I felt like I regained my entire HP. Soon afterwards Kanata left and Alice went upstairs to go take a shower. Best not to go up there because I probably already know what'll happen. Sitting down in the living room watching an anime, Riku began asking me some questions.

"Did you know Friedrich for a long time? I don't understand why in a world where nothing beyond 'normal' exists he's able to pull off things above even that of a physically augmented being…" he asked me as he mulled over what he just said.

"Not really. Only thing I can think of is that he's somehow related to one of the survivors of the destruction of the Tower of Babylon" I said offering a possible answer to his question.

"Hmm that makes sense. Supposedly the trio that survived developed slider abilities here. If you're any proof even normal people can develop slider abilities. The question is how he is using, or at least some portion of it, of his ability on the Reality side. I mean he survived, _unscathed_, jumping out a window on the third story carrying a person on his back. _That_ isn't what is considered 'normal'" he replied to my theory. That's probably as sound as it's going to get without more clues.

"You wouldn't happen to know his family name would you? It's a long shot, I know" he asked me once more.

"Sankt Germain. German equivalent of Saint Germain. Why?" I asked back. He seemed to have realized something I didn't.

"One of the survivors is referred to as Saint Germain. Supposedly he had a power known as Descent. It allowed him to call down ascended beings at full power without the need for Soul Synch. Many Celestian historians believed this was what granted him such a wealth of knowledge and immortality. Maybe he is a direct descendant. After all the last records pertaining to him stated that he found a way to return home…Or for all we know he may very well be Saint Germain _himself_" he concluded.

How the hell did we even start talking about this? He's right though. Friedrich is definitely capable of doing things most people, even those with powers, can't do. It'd be easier to state what he isn't. As if the world's mysteries aren't enough. There's existential mysteries too. But I'd be kidding myself if I said I wasn't enjoying this. I love mysteries after all. So I guess the question the two of us are facing is…

Who are you?


	35. Chapter 34

Chapter 34: The Enlightenment of Kuyō Suō

"You know, you went just a little overboard with the whole combat training yesterday…" I mentioned to Riku as walked along. It's still winter break and today was more boredom as I waited, both in anticipation and fear, for what Haruhi had planned for the Brigade for New Years. With it being milder today I decided to go for a walk to get some fresh air. As I walked along I couldn't help but note how sore my body was from that sudden combat training. At least now I know Riku has a non-lethal setting. Too bad it still hurts like hell…

"My older sister Luci put me through combat training from hell. Believe me, my sudden attack yesterday doesn't even begin to compare" he responded giving a slight chuckle. Right now I'm debating whether you're a showoff or if you're telling me to stop whining. Let's just go with the latter for obvious reasons…

"So here's a new training exercise for you. Have you spotted the cute black haired girl following us?" he asked without looking. No fair you have a freaking radar thingy in your head. I was about to look around suspiciously when he motioned me to stop. How am I supposed to look without looking? "Don't look for her like that. Make her move so that she moves into your field of view without you having to search for her." I did as he asked and I turned around the nearest corner. With the two of us taking cover in a group of people I spotted who he was talking about. We may as well have been standing in the middle of nowhere.

Riku approached her and asked "You seem to be looking for something. Can I help you with your search?" I thought we were supposed to turn the tables on her by putting her under surveillance?

It took Kuyō a hell of a long time to answer. Let's see…if I remember correctly she's an interface from the Sky Canopy Domain. She doesn't seem used to verbal communication. Even the usually quiet Yuki would look like a really talkative person compared to Kuyō. Finally after what seemed like minutes she replied "You."

"Alright, let's cut to the chase. It obviously takes you some time to answer back so why don't we sit down for now" he said to her as he gestured for us all to sit on a snow covered bench. He cleared away the snow before motioning Kuyō to sit on the cleared bench. What the hell? She gets better treatment than I do and she's the enemy! He probably saw the 'what the hell?' expression on my face as he pointed to a section of the bench cleared for me. Fine, I'm sorry, I take it back…

"Does Sasaki even agree to Kyoko's plan? It's been almost six months and she still doesn't believe you all are what you say you are" he asked Kuyō. She took another one of her long response times.

Finally she replied "She doesn't understand Kyoko's ideas. She believes it to be all a game." A game? If her group is so open to her about what they really are, how can she ignore the evidence before her? She's even more grounded to reality than Agent Scully!

"Considering you're an interface it shouldn't be too difficult for you to track how often she tries to communicate with Kyon. If it isn't beyond your limitations would you be able to tell me how often she tries to talk to Kyon?" he asked her more in a way someone asks for favours rather than ordering them. You really expect to get an answer from her? She's not gonna give away sensitive info-

In record time, she responded within seconds "Often. Number of replies: Zero." Well at least she's able to quantify in ways we can understand. Riku just burst into a fit of laughter. I could see a genuine look of confusion on Kuyō's face. Hell if I'm confused, I'm not surprised she is. He's gonna have to give us an explanation for another of his Tsuruya-esque laughing fits.

"Oh man! If she did that to anyone but Kyon, she'd be almost instantaneously labelled a stalker! Her logic is so rigid, it's predictable. She's used to deconstructing ideas and concepts to the point where she thinks her emotions are a product of fiction. I doubt she even realizes that Kyon is the way he is now probably because he wanted to fit her ideals. I wouldn't be surprised if his sister said 'she was the one who took away his smile'. And can you blame her? He gave up dreams and aspirations to settle for pragmatism. Such things are necessary for any sentient being to have some level of happiness" he explained to Kuyō and I guess to some extent me. She still seemed too preoccupied trying to understand such abstract concepts.

"So you're saying he's the Knight of Snark because of her? He gave up his own happiness just to impress one girl who doesn't even understand the concept of love because she thinks it's a fictional construct. Hell, then I'm glad he likes Haruhi then. She might be weird and overbearing but at least she isn't trying to mold him into her ideal person" I replied offering my opinion. I'm glad he explained the situation. I doubt I would've been able to understand that. I changed for Saki because I knew it was for the best. For my own happiness as much as hers.

Our little moment was broken up as Sasaki and the Anti-Brigade waltzed on up. Sasaki didn't seem to mind Kuyō being with us but the other two did. Kyoko was definitely worried. Fujiwara just seemed pissed off. Finally breaking the silence Sasaki said "Oh I see you've made some new friends Kuyō. Have they been treating you well?"

"Yes, they were elaborating upon some concepts I've had some difficulties understanding" she responded, nearly immediately. That's weird she doesn't respond or talk nearly this fast. Did Riku do something to her?

"That's nice of them to help you with your schoolwork. I thought that Haruhi's group did not look so well upon our group because of the game Kyon is playing with them" Sasaki replied giving a friendly smile.

"It wasn't schoolwork. It's something I simply didn't understand. Love still is a difficult concept for me to explain. Although I'm certain that's the way I feel towards Kyon" she said to correct Sasaki. The three of them just looked at her like she had just solved the mystery of life.

"Love? Don't give me that load of crap! You're a machine. What can you possibly understand about human emotions, much less something as complicated as love?" mocked Fujiwara. He looked as if he was about to mock her further before Sasaki shot him a scolding look. Yeah, take that you sneering bastard!

"You could've just asked me about such things Kuyō" Sasaki said to her.

"From what Riku has told me you are not the best source for such information" she replied. Sasaki kept on smiling but I'm sure that must've struck a nerve. "You would have deconstructed such a concept in a way I could understand. However in doing so you would be taking away from its meaning. It's a concept that is built, not taken apart, together by two people who have grown close" she finished. I saw Sasaki's façade falter momentarily, revealing her anger. The quiet ones pack the hardest punch indeed. And then as if to add insult to injury "I wish to build that concept together with Kyon."

"I'm not sure how he explained it but I can assure you that is not the case" replied Sasaki. If the hint of frustration in her voice is anything to go by, she doesn't have a reasonable retort to Riku.

Riku got up and stood between Kuyō and Sasaki's group. I'm sure to them he must be one of the most intimidating people they have ever encountered. All made more by the fact that Riku has dropped his usual smile that he has when he's happily talking with the Brigade and others. Now it was replaced with a look of scorn and anger.

"I don't think that someone who failed so badly in their attempt to get someone to fall for them should be criticizing Kuyō. In fact you achieved the opposite of love with Kyon. You instilled the melancholy and boredom of life in him. How hot the inferno of jealousy must burn in you. He won't even spare you a moment of his time, someone who 'helped' him. And yet he spends much of his time with Haruhi, someone who is a great 'stressor' in his life. I think someone as intelligent as you should be able to recognize what the situation is" he said to her. Is he defending Kuyō?

"You think you can just look down on us, huh?" yelled out Fujiwara.

"Be silent or I shall relish having to silence you permanently. The others in your group are more than capable of redeeming themselves. You, on the other hand, seethe with malevolent intent. You should be happy I haven't hung you by your entrails and have your corpse paraded through the city for your _criminal_ trespasses against the Brigade" barked Riku. Damn that shut up that sneering bastard good. Hell that'd shut _anybody_ up.

Sasaki and Kyoko just looked at him with utter fear. Taking her by her hand, Sasaki took Kuyō back amongst their ranks. She didn't seem to be scared of him though. As their group retreated, Kuyō turned around. "Regardless of what the others think, thank you. You're gift and insight has bettered my understanding of my…feelings" she said as she bowed and followed her group. Why do I feel like we just let the lamb go with a pack of wolves?

"What exactly did she mean by gift?" I asked Riku.

"I vastly improved her insufficient verbal-linguistics data. It's improved her vocabulary, grammar and response time. I also gave her the ability to be able to process information in a way a human would, emotions included" replied Rika. Wait, Rika? But…that's obviously Riku standing beside me…"You see Riku and I are essentially the same person. Think of it as two sides of the same coin. Though we can both exist separately of each other, we can also exist as one in each other's body. Thanks to that I can use Ciel's Rewrite power from Riku's body."

"Do you think Kuyō will be alright? I don't feel so great about letting her go back with them…" I said voicing my opinion.

"She'll be fine. For now. I didn't give her that gift just so she could better communicate and understand everyone around her. I gave it so she can act independently of the Sky Canopy Domain or any other party that would otherwise string her along. In fact it was Riku who suggested it. He seems quite adamant about letting people have their own will" she replied.

I gave a small laugh as I said "I'm sure Kyon will be wondering why Kuyō has taken such an interest in him."

"Indeed. Anyhow I have to get going now, Haruki's calling me. I hope we can see each other again soon. Preferably in better circumstances. You still owe me a date by the way" she said waving good bye. Somehow that didn't sound disturbing in the least considering it was coming from Riku's body.

"If the enemies' relationship is strained then you only need to plant that one seed of doubt to break them apart" commented Riku. Did he just combine a heart-warming moment with guile? So even he had his own agenda…"Don't get me wrong. I want her to be happy. I just hope I can inspire enough that she'll be willing to rebel against them if necessary…"

Well if you can give a monotonous machine the ability to feel and think like a human within the span of an hour, then I'm sure she'll fight for her own individuality.


	36. Chapter 35

Chapter 35: The Confession of Kyon

I can't believe that on such a bitterly cold day, Haruhi would drag us out here to the café just to proclaim her big surprise. Well at least she bought hot chocolate for everyone. I would've preferred hot strawberry milk or some of Mikuru's freshly brewed tea. But no need to look a gift horse in the mouth.

"Since our new members are all from the West, I though we should have a pre-New Year party. We'll stay up until midnight and welcome the New Year with a bang only the SOS Brigade is capable of giving!" she proclaimed. That was…unusually sensible. Surely she must have some catch to all this. Or does she have her own agenda…?

"We'll hold the party at Riku's place. It's big enough that it can accommodate everyone. And it won't be just us too! I've invited Kyon's little sister, Tsuruya, Kunikida, that pervert Taniguchi as well as Kanata and her family. With all of us there, I'm sure we'll all have a blast!" she jovially announced. So we get to party in high style eh? Screw her agenda. I'm gonna enjoy this.

The next day preparations were well underway. Tsuruya's armada of her personal guards certainly sped along the decorating. Riku, Kanata, Mikuru, Yuki, Haruhi and Fuuko (oh God, the starfish…) were busily cooking the extravagant meal we would be having tonight. The rest of us were relegated to moving things around to accommodate everyone comfortably. Since everyone that's coming is spending the night we all cleaned and prepped the innumerable rooms for use.

Before the sun set everything was ready. The party started shortly after. I watched as Riku and Alice hung a large digital timer ticking away the time till the New Year down to the nanosecond. Tsuruya led the way when it came to dancing. Itsuki setup all the different card and board games. Oddly enough Yuki got everyone to sing on the karaoke. Her kickass singing voice blew everyone away when she started singing '_Muon, Madobe Nite_'. I could only laugh as Taniguchi had his ass handed to him by Tsuruya for touching Mikuru's endowments during a game of Twister. Alice seemed to enjoy herself as she sketched scene after scene, forever capturing it in beautiful drawings. Kanata and Saya were 'decorating' Fuuko as she went into starfish sensory overload state in front of all the starfish shaped cookies and cake. As always Haruhi looked annoyed at Kyon who really couldn't give a damn. Everything seemed right with the world. Now this is how everyone should enter the New Year; happy, surrounded by their friends and family.

Then finally the end of our party started as the timer had only ten seconds left.

9…

8…

7…

6…

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!" everyone cheered as noisemakers went off all around. It's nice to see everyone happy without having to worry about anything. Screw Sasaki and her group. They can wait till this is over. The party soon winded down as everyone, exhausted by the day's activities, went to bed.

I woke up sometime in the early morning. Everyone else seemed like they were still asleep. I sleepily stumbled out into the hallway to go and use the washroom. From the opposite wing of the mansion I could see a sliver of light coming from one of the girls' rooms. After using the washroom I headed over to see who would be awake at this hour. Well Haruhi no doubt. But the question is why?

I peered into her room. She and Kyon were just awkwardly sitting in front of each other. Kyon shifted about in his seat nervously as Haruhi impatiently tapped her feet on the floor. Just what are these two up to…?

"Do you still remember that I haven't given you a Christmas present yet?" asked Kyon, finally breaking the silence. Haruhi looked like she just suddenly remembered then proceeded to look annoyed.

"How dare you forget to reward your Supreme Commander?" she scolded in a hushed yell. Kyon proceeded to take out a small gift box. Haruhi took it. Unwrapping it and taking the top off, she pulled out…a plant? Wait, is that what I think it is?

"It's a bit late but Merry Christmas" said Kyon. Haruhi just looked at it disappointedly. That was until Kyon picked it up out of her hands and held it over their heads. No word exists to describe Haruhi's expression. Even less so when Kyon gave her passionate kiss. Let's just say she returned the expression in kind…with interest.

"I'll be honest. You do stupid, reckless and unreasonable things. Though for some inexplicable reason that's the reason I love you. Even when you do nothing, my heart races just being around you. When I'm scared of what ridiculous scheme you've got coming next, I'm filled with excitement and anticipation. In short, I don't even know how I've been living life without you there to mess it all up" he quietly whispered to her.

"Idiot. Didn't I tell you love causes people to do things like that. Are you oblivious or do you just act like that?" she responded. It sounded both like 'I told you so' and a joke at the same time. She embraced Kyon as the two of them were lying down on her bed. She added "Don't think this changes anything…"

"Oh it's changed everything. But things will always be the same. And it's really simple why really: we both love it that way" he replied. Better back away now before I do something to screw up something this epically awesome. I quietly snuck back to my room.

In the morning everyone groggily milled about as Riku served them breakfast. Haruhi and Kyon came down at the same time, both looking far more awake than anybody else. It seems no one noticed them holding hands as they sat beside each other at the table. Finally Tsuruya noticed this and asked them about it.

"So, Haru-nyan, what's gots you and Kyon-kun so lively in the mornings?" she asked.

"I had a _very_ good dream last night" the two of them answered at the same time. When they did the two of them looked away blushing. I could've sworn I heard Riku mumble "…about time…" as I passed by him in the kitchen to get some strawberry milk in the fridge. It would seem she wasn't the only one who had something to say. Too bad it was Taniguchi…

"So did you and Suzumiya do it last night…?" he asked lewdly. The double Falcon Kick to his balls from the newly formed couple should've come as no surprise. Hilarity ensued from the duo of mad laughing fits, Riku and Tsuruya.

If only things could stay like this. But everything has to come to an end. Where there is light, darkness is cast. And I had a pretty good idea who would be casting that dark shadow…


	37. Chapter 36

Chapter 36: The Apocalypse of Haruhi Suzumiya

We all got up from our seats as club finished. Thanks to Taniguchi, Haruhi's and Kyon's new relationship status spread through the school like wildfire. Now it seems the school is divided between those who think he's gone off the deep end and those who think he's the best guy in the world. Naturally neither of them care. I was about to open the door when it flung open. A canister rolled into the room. Oh shit, that's a flashbang!

It detonated in a blinding flash of light. When we all recovered Riku, Kyon and Haruhi where nowhere in sight. I picked up the nearest handy weapon, namely a metal rod. Isn't gonna do much against Kuyō but it'll definitely hurt the others. I ran out of the clubroom. Looking out the window I realized just how deep in shit we were in. The sky had turned to an ocean of light. Other than that it looked like a brightly lit Closed Space. I saw the three of them down in the courtyard below. I was practically jumping down whole flights trying to get down there as fast as I could.

"Riku's wrong. You don't love Haruhi. You are merely her dog to kick around. To make it worse her power keeps you leashed like one. If you transfer Haruhi's power to me I'll show you that you don't really love her" ordered Sasaki. As Kyon tried to run towards Haruhi, Fujiwara dealt him a sucker punch. Kyon fell to the ground breathless. Haruhi was yelling for Kyon to get away as Kyoko tried to restrain her. As he lay on the ground, Fujiwara kept kicking him, maniacally laughing as he said "Not so tough now, are you?"

Riku was busy fighting Kuyō. She managed to disarm him as his swords were stuck in the ground several meters away from him. The two were trading blows with lightning speed, mechanical precision and inhuman power. Riku's left hand, right arm, shins and feet were then covered in black flames. He began to turn the fight in his favour as he punched Kuyō sending her flying back. She punched her fist into the ground and dug her feet in, bringing her to an abrupt stop. Before I could even blink he was already where she had recovered and did a flip kick, sending her flying into the air. As she was airborne he dealt her a drop kick. Upon landing, he gave her a terrifying curb stomp. The ground caved in under his attack and I watched as Kuyō heaved out plenty of blood as she got back on her feet. He tried to help Haruhi but was stopped when Kuyō grabbed his hair and flung him away.

Damn it what the hell am I doing watching? I ran towards Fujiwara and clubbed him over the head with the rod. He recoiled back, yelling in pain. I tried to attack him again but this time he saw it coming and disarmed me. Taking my discarded weapon he attempted to return my sentiment in kind. I sidestepped out of the way and kicked him in the ribs. He dropped the rod as he fell to his knees. I was about to grab it when he pulled out a gun. "Die, you stupid thug!" he yelled out as he pulled the trigger. I stared him down as I heard the bang from the gunshot. I was expecting my life to flash in front of me. Instead it was Haruhi. Oh God, Haruhi!

I watched in slow-mo as Kyoko stopped dead in her tracks while trying to chase Haruhi. Kyon cried out her name at the top of his lungs as he got up off the ground and ran to her side. Riku watched in horror just mere centimetres away from knocking Fujiwara's gun out of his hand. The rest of the Brigade just could only look on in sheer horror as Mikuru fainted. As Haruhi fell dying to the ground I realized that the scarlet spatter was Haruhi's still warm blood.

"Kyon…I never intended this to happen…" Sasaki said trying to apologize. I don't think she even saw this coming. Kyon tried shaking the dying Haruhi awake. Yuki simply put her hand on his shoulder, shaking her head, confirming the worst. Fuck, if Yuki can't fix this, no one can.

"Kyon transfer Haruhi's power to me. I can alter reality and prevent her from dying" offered Sasaki. Her voice was full of genuine sympathy. But even I can tell that'll only make the situation worse somehow.

"…don't, Kyon…" Haruhi managed to let out before she went unconscious. As if Kyon is going to listen to you this time.

He said "I want Sasaki to have your power" to the unconscious Haruhi. Sasaki immediately tried focusing on bringing Haruhi back to life. Sure enough the bullet came out of her wound as it started closing. She immediately snapped back to consciousness as she took in a large breath. Kyon simply held her in his arms as he said "…I though I lost you…"

"The power to be the judge of life or death…How incredible!" Sasaki cried out in a crazed voice. "You…I sentence you to non-existence!" she said passing judgement onto Fujiwara. He yelled out as he fired the rest of his clip at her to no effect. A beam of light fully engulfed him and when it dissipated, he was nowhere to be found. I watched as a crazed look crept onto her face as she started laughing maniacally. Floating up off the ground, a blindingly bright white aura surrounded her. With great power comes great insanity it seems.

Kyon took Haruhi as far away from Sasaki as he could. Itsuki and Yuki joined Riku, Kyoko, Kuyō and I to fight Sasaki. Like a Jedi, Riku had both of his swords come back unto his hands. The gauntlets in his hands looked like a bolt-action rifle on steroids as it loaded two dozen cartridges into each one in a few seconds. Itsuki turned into an energy being glowing a fierce scarlet. After saying something rapidly, Ryoko appeared behind Yuki holding knives made of blue energy in her hands as Yuki's hand turned into an energy sword. Kyoko became just like Itsuki but glowing a blinding sky blue instead. Kuyō made herself a naginata made of black energy. I put on my Object as we all got ready to fight.

"You would dare to oppose your God? No matter I shall reset you along with the rest of this failure of a world! You won't stop me as I start a new Genesis!" she yelled out at us as she laughed crazily. Several beams of light came down from the sky as we all scattered to evade her barrage. Ryoko was the first one up to try and take down Sasaki.

"You're nothing more than a radical element interfering with my observation. Be gone!" she said. She threw all her knives out at random tangents. Each one multiplied into even more. All of the knives converged on Sasaki, turning her into a knifecushion. Way to steal Sakuya's spellcard attack…but at least it looked like it worked. As if for good measure she came up behind Sasaki and drove a dagger into the back of her head. With a brilliant pulse of white light all of Ryoko's knives disappeared as Sasaki came out unscathed. Itsuki and Kyoko came in focusing their being into a sharp edge as they cut up Sasaki into several bloody pieces. She reformed almost instantaneously as she said "Is that the best you lowly mortals can do?"

"Hell Nova!" cried out Riku as a large, violent ball of black fire formed itself above him. Using his twin swords to launch it towards her, it detonated with incredible force. We were all unscathed as everything around us was reduced to a nuked out wasteland. Sasaki once again reformed from her vaporized mist. You gotta be shitting me…We just nuked her and she's still alive? Kuyō and Yuki mimicked each other as they as they performed Ryoko's attack with large spikes of purple and black energy. The two then unleashed a flurry of slashes and thrusts causing each spike to detonate. And no surprise, our God Sasaki returns from the grave. Yeah as if a fireball I throw now would even register to her…

A dimensional doorway opened before us. Seven of Rika's swords flew out and up into orbit. Seven massive pink beams of light rained down on Sasaki. They all converged into one larger beam before it dissipated. As she walked out she said "Septet: Ragnarok Requiem. Too bad it didn't work huh?" Sasaki reformed again. I think I speak for everyone when I say we're fucked…

"You think such things would work on your God? Return to the void from whence you vermin came!" she cried out as a massive pulse of white light radiated from her. Kuyō, Kyoko and Ryoko sacrificed themselves by pushing the rest of us out of the way. I felt bad for Kuyō as I saw her mouthing the words "…I'm sorry, Kyon…" as she vanished. The rest of us went to defend the rest of the Brigade, Sasaki's next target.

"I shall spare you, my beloved Kyon. I shall spare your wench and the rest of your Brigade as well if you denounce your love for her" Sasaki ordered Kyon. Like hell he will.

"All for one, one for all. I love Haruhi and nothing will ever change that. If you're going to kill everyone else, then I'll just kill myself along with them. You can drown in despair in your new world alone" he said rejecting her offer. He made Yuki make a gun as he held it to his head, ready to go out with the rest of us. Well it was fun knowing you all…

"So you can't even see how I feel about you…There's no point in recreating this world if you don't want to be around in it…I'LL JUST MAKE EVERYTHING DISAPPEAR!" she yelled out as tears flowed down her face. Everything around us began to dissolve into white light. Alice, in a desperate attempt to stop her thrust her Object, Excalibur, into Sasaki. Sasaki pushed her off and fired a beam at Alice. She tried to dodge it but couldn't get out of the way in time. Her right arm and shoulder were vaporized clean off. She landed in front of Riku as a large pool of blood formed around her body.

"Ange, transfer ownership and my Linker Core to Alice. Keep her alive as long as you can!" he ordered her. He reverted back to wearing his school uniform as his necklace went over to Alice. The flow of blood stopped considerably. "You should know that without your Core you won't be able to use any magic or even Hellfire. I can understand you sacrificing your power for Alice's sake but please be careful. You're not a juggernaut anymore…" Ange said to him. He gave her a smile and said he'd be fine. I don't really see the point since we're _all_ going to die in a few seconds. But hell at least it was heroically badass.

The closest to Sasaki I would be the first to disappear. In a desperate attempt to shield myself I put up my arms in front of me. Darkness? So this is what it's like to not exist. This sucks…"Keep doing whatever you're doing Alan!" Haruhi yelled out to me. Well at least I'm not alone. Wait, I'm still alive! Then this darkness…it must be Void. Hah, for the win! But it's such a strain to maintain it. I doubt I'll be able to keep this up forever.

"Mimicking sliding method. Force sliding out all remaining members" Yuki said before she started speaking quickly. What do you mean 'force slide'? Each member fell into their own dimensional doorway, Yuki included. My barrier gave way as I fell into a dimensional doorway of my own. The last thing I saw before I entered it was Sasaki on the ground sobbing as she disappeared in wisps of white light. That actually makes me feel really bad for that psycho…

* * *

"Where are we?" Haruhi asked me as I came to. Everything around us was a white void. Is this our world or is this a Gate realm?

"Alan-kun…it's been so long…" Saki said as she appeared before us. She helped me up on my feet. I couldn't resist the urge to embrace her. I thought she was dead…

"I am dead, Alan-kun. But I've been by your side all along. See?" she explained as she pointed to Haruhi. Haruhi played stupid as she looked around then pointed to herself. Wait, Saki is Haruhi?

"Not quite. I was reincarnated in Haruhi. It was the only way I could make sure you wouldn't mope around. I'm actually quite glad you managed to get yourself a new girlfriend on your own" Saki explained. Oh God, here comes the Falcon Punch…!

"So you were the one! The girl whose hand I grabbed!" exclaimed Haruhi in realization. What is she talking about? "On Tanabata, four years ago I wrote down on the field 'I am here! Come to me!' When I went home after, I opened my window trying to reach out to the star I made my wish on. Then there was this brilliant light. I saw someone's hand and I grabbed it. When I woke up I was lying in my bed. I thought that was just a dream…" she told us.

"I assure you it was not. That night, as I died in my own world, I passed on the power passed down my family's bloodline. It seems to have caused you and your friends some trouble but I'm glad you're all alright" Saki said back. It was weird watching them talk. It's like your reflection is talking back at you…

"Then what about the rest of the Brigade? Are they alright?" she asked her.

"Quite. They'll be able to hold their own. But I didn't bring you into this realm for nothing. Scattered throughout the Fictional World are certain World Objects. These, when brought together, are capable of bringing back your world into existence. You'll find a more detailed list in Celestia's Central Shrine" Saki said as she disappeared.

"Our Brigade has two new missions! One, we'll go to Celestia, get the list and find all the World Objects we'll need! Two, find all of our lost Brigade members!" she proclaimed.

"Sounds like a lot of trouble…Enh, what the hell. Let's get started!"

* * *

"You remember me don't you?" Saki asked me.

"Of course I do, I wouldn't forget my best friend! Sorry I meant Friedrich's best friend" I replied back. I've grown so used to his memories that I'm beginning to think they're my own.

"You don't quite understand who you are, do you? You _are_ Friedrich. Or at least the part of him that holds all his memories. When you became a Half-Spirit I made Haruhi try to make another body for the soul left in your comatose body. I guess Luci caught on and as an ascended being Soul Synched with you instead. The end result was a Friedrich that wasn't quite Friedrich. In other words, you, Riku" she explained. Well that was quite a bit to take in.

"Then what about the Friedrich I've met so far? Who's he then?" I asked back curious as to know who this other me was.

"Why, Friedrich of course. That half of his soul holds his persona. Linked with you, he would seem like he always has been. Without the link he would still be himself but without his memory. Although I'm not entirely sure who Soul Synched with him and where his new body came from…" she replied back. That's a tad weird to refer to myself in the third person. How does Fuuko talk like that normally…?

"Ange lied to you by the way. As did Luci. Just because you don't have your Linker Core doesn't mean you can't use your slider ability. In fact you haven't used it at all yet. Anyway my time is running out. Haruhi and Alan will need your help in Celestia…" she added before she disappeared. I haven't? I can't believe that I'm the one I've been looking for all this time. So I'm Friedrich Sankt Germain eh? I gave a little laugh.

"Sorry but you're wrong Saki-chan. I'm not Friedrich Sankt Germain. I'm just Riku."


	38. Chapter 37

Chapter 37: Returner

As I came to I found myself in the hospital bed I was confined to after my little burnout incident. God must be quite the comedian. I raised my right arm and looked at it. That's right, without Ange's aesthetics program it appears like this. Guess I'll just have to get used to that. I got up and went into the washroom to wash my face. I looked at my face in the mirror. I forgot about that too…The sclera of my right eye turned back to its 'normal' black. The red, faintly glowing conduit like tattoos on the right side of my face worked down all the way to my right arm. Maybe I should've listened to Alice-chan after all…

I grabbed a change of clothes from the drawer beside my bed. I haven't seen this outfit in a while. The last time I wore it was when I was studying in Fantasia. I wonder who could've brought this in. Solipse perhaps? I never did get a chance to have a talk with her about that 'thing' that happened in Nanoha's world.

"…so Riku was lying! He really does have a lolicon complex!" a male voice exclaimed.

"No way he does. Why would he fall in love with someone like Alice then? She's more of the mature type" a loud female voice replied. It seems they're getting closer. Better get changed quickly.

"I'm sure he doesn't. Although I would've liked to be his first…" a quiet female voice responded.

"ENH?" the loud female and male responded in unison. Guh…you need to word your sentences better when it comes to those kinds of things Solipse. Great what does Thales and Hanami think of me now?

I opened the door to my room as I scolded the three of them. "Be quiet. There are patients here that actually need the rest." Oh. You're not Thales and Hanami…Solipse came running up to me and hugged me. Aww, she looks cuter than ever…

"You know, you two would make a great couple too. I love how you contrast each other" commented Haruhi. Couple…

"Damn it, I almost forgot! Where's Alice? Is she alright?" I started asking them. The three of them just shook their heads. Alice was pretty badly hurt…But I guess she's alright. I mean if there's anyone tougher than me, it'd be her. "Sorry, I didn't mean to be so boisterous. What about the others?" I asked them again in a calmer manner. Again they just shook their heads. So our close knit Brigade has finally been split up.

"So what's this I hear about you having a lolicon complex eh, Riku?" Alan asked me.

"Remember how I blamed that on Friedrich? I really should've owned up to it. Turns out that _I'm_ Friedrich Sankt Germain" I replied.

"Fried-kun? No way. You two look exactly like each other but you act differently" Alan replied.

"I only have my memory, not my persona. That's why I act differently" I replied. Come to think of it after meeting Saki my memories are much clearer now.

"So you've been lying to your Supreme Commander this whole time?" scolded Haruhi. Glad to see you two are ignoring my obvious disfigurements.

"I wasn't exactly aware of it until just recently" I retorted. "Oh and welcome to Celestia, the afterlife. And before you two have a freak out, neither of you nor our Brigade, are dead. Can't say the same for Kanata and Saya though…"

"So Fried-kun where's the Central Shrine?" asked Haruhi. Ah, back from the brink of death and you've already got a new scheme.

"I'd still like to be called Riku. And you can't go there without being accompanied by a Divine, Shinigami or a group of Commanders. It's supposed to be the home of Celestia's former Goddess" I replied. What could she possibly want in there? There's just that unreadable piece of text in there. Wait…that text looked unusually like Haruhi's unique hieroglyphs. Don't tell me she really was a god after all!

"Saki said we should go in there and get that list! Her aside, I don't take orders from anybody else" she proclaimed. Since we're a paramilitary organization you're going to have to get used to the chain of command. And I'm pretty sure if Kyon said what I said, you'd listen…eventually.

"My mom would probably go with us. I can ask Rewrite-san and Kelowna-san to come with us too if we need them" Solipse suggested. You just started hanging out with Haruhi and you've already become a member of the SOS Brigade…

"Great! Let's go then!" Haruhi exclaimed. With Haruhi in the lead she led us out of the hospital. The bright sun and fresh air is certainly welcome considering the tribulations we have just been put through. Thales and Hanami walked up to us.

"Hey Riku, welcome back! I heard you totalled one of Serenity's bases and rescued your damsel in distress!" Hanami happily said. Oh I most certainly did not. You have Serenity herself to thank for that.

"I do not see Princess Alice with you. Is she alright?" asked Thales.

"I hope so" I replied. Facepalm. Why did you have to say she was a princess in front of Haruhi…?

"Alice is a princess? So then your house actually belonged to her?" she asked me.

"No, Estate is most certainly my abode. And yes, she's of royal descent. However she's the last of her bloodline" I answered back. Here comes Rewrite, Kelowna and North now.

"You all wanted to go to the Central Shrine, right? So come one let's go" said North as she motioned for us to follow. Haruhi eyed North for a while before she finally asked how someone _younger_ than Solipse could be her mother. North promptly replied with her true age. Lesson One, Haruhi: Divines don't look their true age.

As we walked along I was surprised that Haruhi was pretty calm about all this. I thought for sure she would be bouncing off the walls by now. She really does care about the other members of the Brigade enough to put aside that part of her personality. Although she doesn't quite feel like Haruhi without that part of her. Then again the matter at hand is far too urgent to worry about such things.

"This is it, Haruhi. Just let the Commanders remove the locks on the shrine and we can-" I said to her. And off she goes. Well this is Haruhi. I doubt there's a lock in existence that can keep her out…You've got to be kidding me. I just said that in passing! I didn't think it would be true. Best to keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't damage anything inside.

For a Goddess' domicile it sure is quite dark. You'd think with all that power they would've made some sources of illumination. On the flip side though, you can just make it so you can see in pitch black darkness. Which Haruhi has just proven. I guess having the ability to warp reality can be quite handy indeed. I went over to her or at least I think it's her. It's much harder now that I don't have Ange's radar…thingy.

"Well that was pretty easy to find! But I can't shake the feeling that I already knew where it was…" she commented as she picked up the parchment…I think. I'm fairly certain that the rustling noise was the parchment…

"Are you saying that you were essentially on autopilot? With your ability to warp reality you could've made it easier on yourself" I suggested to her. Not as if it would do much good now.

"Oh that's right, we haven't told you yet, eh? Haruhi's power is…well the easiest way to describe it is 'not at 100%'" Alan replied. It seems the memory-lock hasn't dulled your skill in navigating the shadows. So essentially you're telling me that she opened the locks and found her way all the way over here without using her power? You Suzumiya…_are_ a mystery.

"What exactly does it say on there?" I asked her. I truly hope she can read it.

"Stuff" she replied. Well that's not exactly helpful. What kind of stuff exactly is what I wish to know. "…Star shaped ornament, will-o-wisp, prism, fireball, key, necklace, staff and a pen? How're these things supposed to help us restore my world? And where are we supposed to find these things anyway?" she asked.

"The star shaped ornament…That might be in Kanata's world. I'm sure it isn't called 'Lucky Star' for nothing" answered Alan. I wonder if he remembers seeing Konata naked. Though I don't want to admit it after seeing her maybe I do have a preference for girls like that. Might explain my feelings for Solipse…But my thoughts are digressing. I better suggest this now before I forget.

"The staff…It might be a long shot but it might be in a world I've visited before. Staffs seem to be the preferred weapon there. With the amount of relics uncovered in that world, I'm sure we'll be able to find the staff itself or some clue regarding it" I replied. I also hope that's where Alice is. It's the only place I know that would be able to give her proper medical treatment for her injury.

"Alright then!" she proclaimed, "Mission Start!"

* * *

"Headmaster Izumi-san, we'd like to add someone to our team roster" Mato asked of her.

"I thought you said Eve was plenty help to you?" Kanata replied. She wondered who these two new slider prodigies would add on their team.

"This is more of a personal request. Perhaps she'd be able to better explain it" said Eve. She wondered who would ask a personal request through Fantasia. The DSO is better equipped to deal with such things.

"It's not just Haruhi's world that has been wiped from existence. Any world that has Haruhi or Haruki in it has been wiped from existence as well. I humbly beg you to give me the opportunity to find a way to restore these worlds" said a girl as she entered.

Kanata recognized her. Even more so in that stylized blood red armour of hers. She was Riku's gender-flipped equivalent, Rika Furude. Kanata let out a giggle. Not surprisingly the three did not understand.

"I've already registered you here in Fantasia. It won't be much of a problem to add you to Mato's team roster. Unfortunately someone has already taken that mission request. It would be best if you at least complete some classes here first before you go off sliding, Rika. Rest assured the team who accepted it is very capable."

* * *

"Is your new arm causing you any discomfort?" asked Ange. Alice still felt lightheaded from the blood loss. Upon examination though she found that her arm was back to normal. However she could tell something was different about it.

"Not discomfort per se, although it does not feel…right" she said struggling for a way to describe it.

"It's a prosthetic arm. Its Midchildan technology developed from the Jail Scaglietti incident. Suffice it to say it wasn't the easiest thing to build. With Riku's Linker Core fusing with whatever was your original source of magic, your magical output has exponentially increased. I would suggest performing some calibration tests when you are feeling better" instructed Ange.

Alice moved her arm about as if she were swinging a sword. "This arm is serviceable. I will heed your advice Miss Ange" she said.

* * *

"Watch out!" cried out a brown haired boy.

Yuki watched as a truck was about to collide with a little purple haired girl on a bike. She reprogrammed her speed to light speed. Before a second even passed by she was already in front of the girl. Startled, the girl fell of her bike. With a quick turn, Yuki caught the girl while she stopped the truck dead in its tracks with a single hand. The driver and the girl's friends were amazed by Yuki's inhuman speed and strength.

"Attempting to re-establish contact with Integrated Data Sentient Entity…" she said in her monotonous voice. Although monotonous, she was worried. Before leaving Haruhi's world she detected a large scale data _deletion_. For her, it was both unique and frightening. "Unable to re-establish contact." Without her ability to check on her friends conditions, she was left to do one thing that she never thought she was capable of doing.

Hope.

* * *

"Hey! Are you trying to get killed?" yelled out a young middle school girl. He was frightened but at the same time relieved. When he came to he found himself in the way of an oncoming train. If it were not for the girl with the ability to teleport, it would surely have not ended well.

"My apologies miss. I am feeling…disoriented. Would you be able to tell me where I am?" Itsuki asked the girl as he surveyed his foreign surroundings.

"You're in Academy City. This is a place where we train prospective espers. Oh and for your information it's not 'miss'. I am Kuroko from Judgement" Kuroko answered with a hint of annoyance.

Itsuki wasn't sure if he heard her correctly. 'Train prospective espers'? As far as he was aware, a person either is or isn't one. There was no way to become one. Curious he went through the mindset under which his powers activate. Much to his surprise he turned into his energy form. Kuroko looked at him with interest.

"Well…this certainly is different" he said to himself.

* * *

Mikuru was scared when she first regained consciousness in this world. Her first sight was a boy looking down on her. She misinterpreted it as him assaulting her. She did the only thing she could do: scream. A young girl with long pink hair came to her rescue as she started to beat her assaulter away. Or at least that was what she thought before she realized what she had done.

"You dirty Familiar! How dare you assault an innocent woman like that?" she yelled out at him as she beat him relentlessly.

"I was trying to help her! I found her passed out so I thought I'd stay until she came to!" he replied.

"Please stop! I'm sorry…I thought you were trying to assault me…" Mikuru pled with the young girl. Much to her relief, the violent pink haired girl stopped.

Now she was here in Tristain Academy of Magic. Louise, the pink haired girl, offered her a room in the girl's dormitory. She went around the spacious grounds until she found the boy that had stayed with her until she regained consciousness. Upon finding him, he struck up a conversation.

"So you're from Japan as well?" asked the boy.

"Um…yes. I'm Mikuru Asahina. I was residing in Nishinomiya before I found myself here" she shyly replied.

"I'm Saito Hiraga, from Tokyo" he replied.

She was glad she found a new, friendly acquaintance. However she was quite concerned about her friends. "…I wonder where the others are…" she mumbled to herself as Saito gave her a quizzical look.

* * *

When Kyon came to he found himself inside a movie theatre. It was completely dark for a few seconds. He knew that he had been thrown into another world by Yuki. 'Where' was what he wasn't sure about. The next thing he saw rattled him as much as the time the world changed on December 18th.

_The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya_. As if to add to that he heard himself narrating. It was a movie about the events of December 18th. He sat there for the whole movie just in sheer shock. Here he was in a world where he existed only as an anime character. When the lights came back on, the girl sitting beside him stood up from her seat in surprise. Kyon simply figured that the seat was empty before.

"Oh…my…God…It's Kyon!" she yelled out. Sure enough everyone within earshot turned around and looked at him. The theatre was filled with the flashes of cameras and flurries of questions.

And in a way he only could, he facepalmed as he said "…yare, yare…"


	39. Chapter 38

Chapter 38: Lucky Star

"Alright, Riku. How do we go to these worlds?" Haruhi asked him.

"We'd need to 'slide' through a dimensional doorway or Gate realm. Unfortunately without magic I can use I'm unable to do so. Although Alan should be able to" I replied. It's quite an inconvenience to get around without magic. Or at least one I can use. If the tattoos on my face are glowing then I'm sure my true slider ability will enable me to use magic. For now though I'll have to rely on Alan until Haruhi's power recovers to the minimal point where she's capable of dimensional travel.

"I was kinda hoping you'd be able to do it…Last time didn't go so well…" Alan replied worriedly as he went through the motions to open one. Well look on the plus side, Kanata isn't around this time. Then again Haruhi is. And God knows she packs a heavier punch.

Sure enough he opened one without intruding on a woman's privacy. Beyond the door was Konata. She was in her room playing one of her computer games. My power might be gone but my memories of anime and manga sure are quite handy for sliding.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go!" yelled Haruhi as she pushed Alan into the doorway. What was Kanata thinking making Haruhi our team leader? Well this doorway won't last long. Better go through.

"Haruhi-sama…in my room…" she said slowly as our arrival sunk in. One. Two. Three. Cue fangirl squeal. And faint. That was strangely amusing. I guess even in the Fictional World the girls want Haruhi. I picked her up and placed her in her bed. Although I'm sure she'll just head back to her computer as soon as she wakes up. A few minutes later she came to. She was still enthusiastic meeting her favourite anime character, but this time around it was toned down. After getting Haruhi to sign a few mangas and other miscellaneous paraphernalia, Haruhi got down to business.

"Konata, we're looking for a special star-shaped ornament. Show us where it is" she excitedly ordered. Well that wasn't exactly effective…

"By 'special' she meant something with power, like say magic. It would certainly be something that would stand out in your world considering such things aren't supposed to exist here" I elaborated. Although, despite being an anime otaku, I'm sure she probably won't know anyway. Well it was worth asking anyway in case she does know.

"Sorry, but I don't know anything about that. But…I may be able to find out if you do me a little favour…" she said slyly.

"Anything! Just ask!" Haruhi exclaimed. That didn't sound like excitement. More like impatience. Is she really that determined to find all the World Objects we need and the Brigade?

"Karaoke! Your songs are my favourite to sing!" she said to Haruhi. She seemed genuinely proud of that but there's still that small hint of impatience. I would say I'm glad to see Haruhi back to normal…but something seems off…

After leaving the room, Konata emerged wearing something more fitting for walking about town. She called her friends on her cellphone and told them to meet her at an address I didn't recognize. Well I guess if we must do this, we may as well enjoy it. Maybe it might even put Haruhi at ease. After taking the train we found ourselves in front of a karaoke bar. Kagami, Tsukasa and Miyuki were waiting for us inside. When we entered, Haruhi made me pay for it. Thankfully it seems Luci's credit card is multidimensional compatible. Makes me wonder if this card is an Object…

Haruhi picked out a room for us. We entered it and sat on the couches in the room. While we turned on the karaoke machine, Konata ordered us some drinks. Did I just hear her order beer? Beer plus Haruhi can't possibly end well…The server came by and gave us our drinks. Minoru Shiraishi? Well at least he seems more polite than the character he plays…I don't think I could stand it if he starts acting like Taniguchi, even if it's for laughs.

It took us a _long_ time to go through Konata's song list. I almost forgot that most of the songs sung in the _Haruhi Suzumiya_ anime were sung by Haruhi's seiyu, Aya Hirano. And then there are the character and image songs. Well at least she seems like she's enjoying herself. Though I'm sure the beer is contributing. Well while she and Konata are busy maybe I should pass the time talking to her friends. Perhaps they may know where the World Object is hidden.

"Man, I thought Konata was crazy. At least she knows she's cosplaying as Haruhi. That girl _believes_ she's Haruhi" commented Kagami. It really is her. But would you believe my explanation?

"Though the chances for it are infinitesimally low, it could be the real Haruhi. There are several theories out there that suggest the existence of other dimensions" noted Miyuki.

"What if I said she was Haruhi?" asked Alan.

"Then you're just as crazy" replied Kagami.

"Please hear us out. This girl really is Haruhi. I've seen her power bring her back from the brink of death. Sasaki stole her power for a short time. After a crazy rampage she ended up purging her world out of existence. She travelled here in the hopes of finding something that would contribute to her goal of restoring her world. Additionally we are trying to find the remaining Brigade members. Believe it or not, but that's the story we'll be sticking with" I said in the vain hopes of trying to convince them.

"That's terrible! What can we do to help?" asked Tsukasa.

"We're searching for something called a World Object. It is an item imbued with great power. We believe there's one in this world that can help us. According to Haruhi, it looks like a star shaped ornament. I know it's a vague description but would you happen to know where something like this could be?" I asked. The three of them shook their heads.

"It is quite possible that this World Object could be related to a legend or myth. I'll do what I can to find it" offered Miyuki.

"My sister and I are shrine maidens. If we're lucky we might find a story that matches what you're looking for" Tsukasa offered shyly.

Finally, we're getting somewhere. I wonder how long we'll be in this world searching for it. I hope it doesn't take too long though. Hopefully, if we're lucky, time moves slower here than where everybody else is. Preferably, I'd like to find this World Object before Serenity learns we have left the safety of Haruhi's world. After a little while longer, Konata finished. Alan and I were relegated with the unfortunate task of having to help the extremely inebriated Haruhi back to Konata's house.

Curious onlookers abounded by the time we were heading home. At this point I hope my appearance is enough of a deterrent. I would prefer to keep my problem solving as non-violent as it can be. Thankfully we managed to get back to Konata's home without much fuss from either the general public or Haruhi. I laid Haruhi down on the nearest couch. With Konata leading me into the kitchen, I set out to make us a real meal. Unfortunately it turns out beer plus Haruhi does, in fact, not end well.

"Oh come on! It'd be just like kissing Saki!" Haruhi said slurring her words. I can only guess the poor unfortunate in question is Alan.

"Cut it out! Seriously, not funny!" he said trying to keep Haruhi back. It wasn't long before Konata joined in on uselessly restraining Haruhi. I guess even Konata is willing to go against her idol if the situation calls for it.

"If I can't kiss Kyon, then you'd be-" was all I could let her say. I gave her a stereotypical 'hit over head equals knock out'. I really do hate hitting women. However when reason fails, force is a very convenient Plan B. At the very least I showed some mercy by bringing her back to the couch and putting a blanket over her. Hopefully she won't feel that in the morning. I headed back to the kitchen and finished preparing our dinner. Alan and Konata just gave me a 'did you just do that?' look. Yes. I just did that. Let's try not to dwell on it further. I ate my dinner and headed to bed, namely the seat beside Haruhi.

"Guh…I feel like someone bashed me over the head with a chair…" Haruhi said as she groaned and rubbed the back of her head.

"Technically it was my fist. I could explain if you want" I said as an icepack mysteriously appeared in front of her. She picked it up and promptly placed it on her head after which she breathed a sigh of relief. Although I doubt I'm mistaken when I say the 'chair' sensation may be from your hangover.

After sitting upright she demanded to know why I would hit her over the head. "You had too much to drink so Alan and I brought you back. Since you were unconscious I laid you down on the couch. By the time I finished cooking dinner, you were trying to make out with Alan. After refusing to listen to him and Konata, I proceeded to knock you out. Naturally I'll accept whatever punishment you have in mind for assaulting my superior officer."

"Beer?" she said. Glad to see you learned _nothing_. That or you're screwing with me. "You're right; I'm just kidding with you. I'm sorry for the trouble I caused…"

"I think we can let it slide this time. If there's nothing else your dinner, or rather your breakfast, is in the fridge. Let's try to avoid that next time shall we?" I said as she headed off into the kitchen. That went over better than expected. I doubt she realizes just how severe that could've gotten. The last thing I or anybody else for that matter, would want is for Kyon to get pissed off at her, regain her power and finish what Sasaki tried to do. Her walking around for a day in some pain and a hangover is _definitely_ preferred over that option.

I understand now though why she's so impatient. And quite frankly I don't blame her. The others aside, the one she really wants to get back to is Kyon. Likewise I want to get back to Alice. With Serenity on the loose, retrieving the World Objects are my top priority. I'd like to believe that the Brigade members can take care of themselves long enough for me to halt a possible 'end of the world as we know it'. Hopefully Konata and her friends can turn up something.

* * *

Author's Note: Sorry for taking so long with the newest update. I wanted to proofread my stuff before posting and realized that I had messed up how I wanted the plot to play out. Unlike other times, I'll only be posting one chapter at a time until I can fully fix the issue. So far Chapters 39 - 46 have been fixed and will require a quick proofread before I post them. Hopefully you're enjoying this crossover piece so far. If you would like to ask a question or simply comment on it, simply leave a review and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can.

Oh, and one more thing: Have a merry Christmas (or happy holidays, depending on your religion) and a happy new year!


	40. Chapter 39

Chapter 39: The Training of Haruhi Suzumiya

"Feeling better?" I asked Haruhi.

"Yeah…But why did you bring both of us out here?" she asked. Alan kept following until he stopped. The expression on his face changed as he realized what was going to happen.

"Haruhi, watch out!" he yelled out at her. I pulled out my twin Buster Shots and started firing at her. Thankfully these guns still have Hellfire energy cores. I set it to stun, giving them a sensation similar to a mild static shock. But they don't need to know that…

The two of them took cover behind some trees. I could hear Haruhi ordering me to cease fire over the shots. I stopped firing, but not because of Haruhi's orders. The two of them came out from behind their cover. They started walking over to me; yelling how I was being reckless. Oh the fun is just getting started…I resumed firing once they were far enough away from any nearby cover. The two made a mad dash for whatever cover they could find.

"Don't come out from behind your cover unless an opportunity presents itself to you. If you're in the open, run to the nearest sufficient cover you can find" I told them. I shot a rock that Haruhi had tried to throw at me. I could hear her silently cursing. "To be honest I'm doing this especially for you, Haruhi. With you out of the protection of your world, you're fair game for Serenity. Since she particularly likes pistols, I thought this would be an appropriate training exercise for you."

I summoned away one of my Buster Shots. Haruhi peeked over her cover to see why I had stopped shooting. She ducked back down as I fired off another shot. I'm surprised Alan hasn't tried to help her yet. I ran over to her cover and stood over it, ready to shoot. I was greeted by the sight of one of her mischievous smirks. So she set a trap for me, eh?

"Take that!" she said as her sweep kick knocked me down. I fell back away from her and dropped my Buster Shot. Alan immediately dashed out from his cover to grab it, securing it before I could. I rolled back before Haruhi's drop kick could hit me. Alan really needs a better Object. Even with an accurate gun, he still manages to miss. I tackled him down and he dropped the gun. Haruhi was about to do the same but I kicked my Buster Shot at her. She was knocked back by the force of it hitting her.

"Use a gun as it's intended…" she said getting back on her feet. Despite being hit by a gun with enough force to knock her down, Haruhi looked unfazed and uninjured. Alan got back up too, although his arm looks a bit injured. Well that wasn't half bad at all; especially considering this is Haruhi's first training exercise.

"Guh, you have two people's worth of combat knowledge. Why am I not surprised we didn't win?" Alan commented rubbing his arm. Guess I tackled him harder than I intended.

"Rather than complaining, you should work on improving. Seeing how you two did today, you should do fine next time. Anyway we'll move onto a less painful training session after some ice cream. It's on me so don't keep whining" I said to the two of them. Alan may have recovered his skills but his body isn't used to the same kind of punishment it used to take. And Haruhi is Haruhi.

We went to an ice cream parlour and I got them whatever flavour they wanted. Alan naturally took the strawberry flavoured one. Haruhi took two scoops of apricot flavour. Come to think of it that's the kind of lip gloss she uses. Perhaps apricot is her favourite fruit? As for me I opted for ube flavour. I always liked the fact that it was like taro bubble tea in ice cream format. We decided to take a break on a nearby park bench to enjoy our ice cream.

"Haruhi, do you know what your power is?" I asked her. By this point she should at least have an idea what it is.

"Something about warping reality…" she said as she took a bite out of one of her scoops.

"Do you know how to use it?" I asked her again. She swallowed it before she began talking again.

"Nope. I was kinda hoping you could tell me" she replied. I shook my head. Quite frankly I don't understand how her power works. If Yuki were here, then I'd be able to determine it. Well let's give this a shot…

"You see Alan's ice cream? Try turning it into a bottle of cold strawberry milk" I said to her. She focused on it intently. Watching Alan lick the resulting bottle was rather amusing.

"Enh? What happened to my ice cream?" he said. He quickly dismissed that question as he opened the bottle and guzzled down its contents in two and a half seconds. Hmm it would seem he beat Saya's record.

"As you know, your power has been reduced due to Sasaki stealing it from you. Although if you keep practicing with it, I'm sure you'll be able to recover it completely" I said to her.

"What if I don't want to?" she quickly replied back. So she must have heard Sasaki say how her power keeps Kyon on a leash.

"You don't have much of a choice. I might be able to fight normal people and even lower echelon Demons, but I won't be able to protect either of you against the stronger ones. That's why I'm training you," I said to her. "Once you're back in the safety of your world we'll find a way to deal with it." Anyway the better you can control your power, the less you'll stress Kyon out with dealing with the aftermath. The two of us finished our ice cream and headed back.

We decided to take it easy when we got back. Haruhi practiced by creating things from nothing. Alan practiced using his power by removing everything Haruhi created from existence. Except for an icepack she created. That still has some use. I laughed at how these two were just toying with the law of conservation of mass/energy. It's good these two are getting a grasp of their powers. I still haven't been able to use mine at all. At this rate I won't be able to protect either of them. Hell, they'll be protecting _me_ at this rate.

I headed to Konata's room to use her computer. If there's one thing I haven't lost, it's all the knowledge and experience I've gained so far. I was in for a surprise as I opened the door.

"So we meet again, Serenity" I said to her. She was sitting on Konata's windowsill, looking into the room.

"I see the explosion didn't finish you off, Riku" she replied. Ah, is that a hint of frustration I hear?

"It's Friedrich by the way. Turns out you were right all along…For once" I said back in response.

"Do you want to know about the World Object here? It's called LuckyStar. It is capable of granting nearly any wish its owner wants" she told me.

"Why tell me that?" I asked her suspiciously. This has got to be some sort of trap or trick…

"I want to be able to beat you fair and square. I'll prove to the world that I am, in fact, worthy of you!" she said as she dropped out of view. 'Worthy of you'? What is she going on about? I don't recall setting any goal or precedent for her to beat, as Riku or Friedrich. Whatever. Thanks to her little spiel I can narrow my search. I won't let her beat me to that World Object. And if she does I'll gladly 'relieve' her of it.

* * *

Well that didn't really go so well. My search today turned up nothing. I heard Konata come in from school. She'll probably want to play on her computer. I headed towards the kitchen. May as well make use of what skills I do have left and cook dinner. Engrossed with the task at hand, I didn't even notice Haruhi and Alan peeking into the kitchen. Just like Luci, they were drawn in by the aroma and the certainty that whatever leaves this room will be a delectable feast. Hmm...perhaps if I'm feeling up to it, I could purposely make a bad meal to watch them in amusement. On second thought that would be a waste of perfectly usable materiel.

With everyone satisfied with the meal, we began to go through the motions of heading to bed. Once again taking the couch was our intrepid leader Haruhi. Surprisingly enough this other seat is rather comfortable for resting in. Alan gets to be the unlucky unfortunate, sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor. I think I will cut him some slack and let him sleep on my seat tomorrow. Still feeling quite awake, I decided to strike up a conversation with Haruhi.

"So, how was your second time kissing Kyon?" I asked her. I'd rather not tell her how I came to know about the first time. The second time however was my doing. Kyon's obliviousness to her advances, feigned or not, had long since passed the point of amusement.

"…You had something to do with that, didn't you?" she asked back. Ah, clever. As expected of Haruhi.

"To be honest I got tired of watching Kyon ignore your advances. For a little while it was amusing, but after a while it ceased being amusing. Then I just felt bad for you. I eventually managed to convince him that it was for the best, both for him and everyone else" I replied. I'm quite curious to see how she reacts to this…

"You noticed?" she asked back in surprise.

"It was as glaringly obvious as a canon pairing. Though to be fair, Itsuki would probably have been the first to notice. Sharing a link with you, he's the first to find out about changes in your moods and emotions. Although it goes without saying that caused him more than a fair share of awkward moments with Kyon…if you catch my drift" I replied.

"Oh_…OH…"_ she responded. Yes, awkward indeed. Come to think of it I wonder if Itsuki's invasion of Kyon's personal space was a result of Haruhi's emotions.

"This is quite amusing. I believe it's best to savour moments like this. Let's retire for tonight and continue some other time. Good night" I said as I closed my eyes. I wonder what I left Haruhi to think about. Well I'm sure if she feels that I'm privy to that she'll tell me. For now, getting some rest is my priority.

* * *

Author's Notes: Another release for those of you who are reading this. The revisions are going well so I should be able to post new chapters up whenever I have time to. As always, I appreciate reviews; especially if they have positive criticism. I hope you're enjoying the story thus far and thanks for reading!


	41. Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Six Degrees of Separation

I went jogging outside before Haruhi and Alan woke up. It was a nice Saturday morning. It was bearably warm with a refreshingly cool breeze. Thankfully it seems Serenity is so hard at work trying to beat me to the World Object that she hasn't come to bother us again. That's for the best since we'd be no match against her and her organization in our current state. Although I get the odd feeling someone is watching my back. If I were to hazard a guess it'd probably be Rika or Friedrich. They're the only ones who I can sense anyway.

I continued until I stumbled upon a Japanese shrine atop a hill. Thinking back on it now, I never did get a chance to visit the shrine in Hinamizawa. I wonder what deity they praise there. Better yet, I wonder how Hanyuu is doing. I'm sure that an apprentice of Kanata's would've found a way to solve the problem quickly and efficiently. Although my memories of watching Higurashi No Naku Koro Ni may suggest otherwise. I sat down on the stairs and looked out on the city from my vantage point. This is quite a large city. Where on this world am I supposed to find this thing…?

I continued on my jog, heading down the steep hill. I got back before anyone had woken up. Well I doubt anybody else will make breakfast; though I'm sure Haruhi is more than qualified enough to do this. Then again, being Haruhi, she's more likely to relegate it to someone else. But first I'll freshen up by taking a shower. When I finished, I was surprised to find that Haruhi did in fact make breakfast. Perhaps I shouldn't take my time... although having long hair doesn't exactly help.

"You're always cooking so I thought I'd do it this morning. Anyways a leader is obligated to treat their subordinates every once in a while" she said as she saw me come into the kitchen to investigate. That's our Haruhi, the jerkass with a heart of gold. 'Jerkass' seems a bit harsh. Misunderstood eccentric girl with a heart of gold sounds a bit more appropriate. "Anyway, Konata asked us to help her with something. That's what the laptops on the table are for" she told me as she served me an omelette she cooked. I'm sure this has something to do with one of her games.

"Morning Haruhi, Riku" said Alan as he managed to find his way to the table and eat half asleep. Or rather, knowing him, did all this in his sleep. At least he hasn't been complaining about his nightmares for a while. Maybe seeing Saki in that realm and his new relationship with Rika has put him at ease. I hope that's the case.

After everyone had woken up and ate breakfast, we congregated in the living room. Taking up the usual role of leader from Haruhi, Konata instructed us to turn on the laptops and open one of the games. Figures, this is Konata were talking about. But she's rather adept at these games. What could she possibly require our assistance with? The game was an MMORPG that she said was extremely popular in this world. It prompted us to make a character profile. The customization was actually quite refined and expansive. In fact most of the character creation involved some degree of customization. After a few minutes we completed and started playing.

Haruhi opted to play as a straightforward Warrior type class, her avatar wielding a lance. Alan opted for the Thief style class, his avatar wielding a katana. Without the need to be tied down to any one class, I choose a combination of a sabre and pistol. After a few pre-requisite tutorials we finally entered the actual game world. Much to our surprise we were immediately bombarded by friend requests. I'll admit I didn't think Konata was that clever. We accepted as many of them as we could until our list was full. Konata then invited us into her Guild, aptly named SOS Brigade. With all of our members present or tuned in on Guild Chat, she explained to our Guild that we were to search for a mysterious star shaped ornament in real life. I added that it supposedly has the ability to grant any wish. Konata said that anyone who gives us information that leads to its discovery would receive 'great' rewards.

After everyone logged off, we were left playing in the game by ourselves. Haruhi, Alan and I formed a party together to go and level grind. Konata left then reappeared with her own party consisting of Kagami, Tsukasa and Miyuki. Our party teamed up and headed into a dungeon. With Konata's party spearheading, we were able to reach the boss. Konata and Haruhi pulled aggro. Alan kept attacking it from behind to stay out of its AOE attack. Kagami and I were attacking it from just outside its AOE range with spells and gunfire. Miyuki kept healing and buffing Konata and Haruhi. Tsukasa is doing…something…I think. After a little while we successfully beat the boss, took our loot and left.

_St. Germain: I have to admit Konata, your idea was quite ingenious_

_Kona-kun: Just cuz I don't do so well at school doesn't mean I'm stupid. Anyway, haven't you ever heard of the idea of Six Degrees of Separation?_

_Miwiki: I have. It refers to the idea of "A friend of a friend"_

_HARUHI: Can we add Konata to the Brigade?_

_Neko: We already have 8 members, 15 if you count Rika, Tsuruya and other people_

_St. Germain: Oh come on, don't be such a stick in the mud. If she agrees, then yes, Haruhi_

_Kona-kun: YYYYYYEEESSSSS! I shall be Haruhi-sama's loyal member!_

_Kagamin: Oh man…As if Konata on her own wasn't crazy enough, now she's working for Haruhi. And Tsukasa why haven't you said anything so far?_

_Frogger: So that's how you talk in chat! Sorry about that…I was never really any good at these kinds of games…_

_Kuroi: Hey Konata! How'd our Guild numbers rise so quickly?_

_Kona-kun: I invited anybody who wasn't part of a Guild. I told them if they could help Haruhi-sama I'd give them 10,000,00 gold and a full set of Ultima equipment_

_Kuroi: Haruhi-sama? You don't mean…_

_HARUHI: Haruhi Suzumiya, the Supreme Commander of the mighty SOS Brigade!_

_St. Germain: If you want someone to blame for this spatial disturbance, blame Sasaki. Yes, _that_ Sasaki._

_Kuroi: No way! I've got to see this for myself! I'll be over in a few minutes Konata_

_Neko: Guess we have some 'splaining to do. Think we should all log off_

_St. Germain: Agreed. It's been fun, we should do this again_

_HARUHI logged off_

_Neko logged off_

_Kona-kun logged off_

_Logging off…_

And we have a new member for the SOS Brigade. I'm sure Kyon could use some company in the normal person department. By 'normal' I mean someone who doesn't have any power. She's easily up there on the eccentricity scale as her precious Haruhi-sama. Hmm 'Kuroi', if I'm correct, is her teacher. You'd think people would be more like Kagami and be doubtful of such things. Instead they're quite curious. I'd be rather amused if someone in the Real World believed Kyon is who he says he is. Being your generic normal person he could easily live in the Real World as easily as though it were the Fictional World.

Konata let Kuroi-sensei enter after she rang their doorbell. Already at first glance she's considering the possibility that this might really be Haruhi. I proceeded to explain to her our situation which she, again, openly believes.

"A wishing star, huh? It's pretty obscure but there used to be a story of how an unknown Goddess hid one of her precious treasures in the sacred mount. Her treasure was supposedly a star shaped ornament and the sacred mount refers to Mt. Fuji. So if it's there, do I get the reward Konata? I'm in your Guild after all!" she playfully replied. I doubt she actually needs it. After seeing her player info, she's one of the highest ranked players in everything from money to equipment. Guess I'll have to pay for this little trip…

"Then it's decided! Tomorrow we're all going to Mt. Fuji and searching for the World Object!" she proclaimed. At least we narrowed down its location. But Mt. Fuji is pretty big. How are we supposed to search over such a large area with only a few people? Actually I have a pretty good idea…I pulled Alan aside to talk to him privately.

"Haruhi's kidding right? We're not really going to search the whole mountain, are we?" he frantically asked.

"What if instead of searching the mountain, we search for Serenity instead? I think she has a good idea where it might be. If we follow her around we'll probably find it. If I remember correctly, stealth is not her forte" I said sharing my plan with Alan. Of course he would be hesitant in agreeing. This is Serenity after all. Though I think he realizes this is the easiest way to find LuckyStar. After dramatically mulling it over for a couple minutes, he reluctantly agreed. Excellent…I'll let Serenity's own ambition be her downfall. The look on her face when I steal it back from her should be priceless.

* * *

Author's Notes: My nearly month long Christmas vacation gave me plenty of time to fix and work on this story. The good news for those of you who read this is is that I've gotten things done up to Chapter 55 so far. It turns out that the corrections I made to the plot after Chapter 46 is going to make this a bit longer than I had hoped. As always, I hope you enjoyed reading and feel free to leave reviews at your leisure. As for me, time to head back to college...


	42. Chapter 41

Chapter 41: LuckyStar

"Pick up the pace people! We haven't even finished searching half of the mountain yet!" exclaimed Haruhi as we continued our climb up. I think that was aimed more at Konata's group rather than Alan and I. Haruhi's relentless climb and search was finally brought to a halt as Konata's group begun succumbing to exhaustion. Having a chance to rest, Alan and I separated from the group. I can only hope that what Serenity said wasn't a trap after all.

Alan and I wandered around trying to find Serenity. In hindsight, this isn't much different from what Haruhi is doing. The throngs of tourists aren't helping either. Come on…she's got to be on this mountain somewhere. Unless of course we're in the wrong place. You'd think a Caucasian woman in her late teens with long dark blonde hair would stand out…

"Riku, found her" Alan quietly whispered to me. What do you know, there she is. Usually she and I are at odds with each other so I've never noticed how beautiful she is. Guh, guess I know how Taniguchi's brain works now. Not that I really ever wanted to find out nor should anyone else.

We followed her around for quite some time. I'm surprised she's actually exercising enough caution to try posing as a tourist. Too bad the only ones on this mountain who she'd need to hide from are us and we saw right through her disguise. Well no need to gloat about it to her…yet. When we reached a spot where there were no other people around, she disappeared into the bush. Time to go bushwhacking.

I followed her on my own, sending Alan back to get Haruhi and the others. Oh, what's this, a path? If I knew there was a path leading there then I would've just used satellite images from the internet. Well it beats going through the bush. Now where did she go off to? Oh, there she is. And her pistol is pointed at me. I barely had time to get behind cover. You'd think with a Desert Eagle she'd be able to punch through a thin tree like the one that's barely covering me. I summoned a Buster Shot, returning fire with three shot bursts. Wait, a Desert Eagle? That isn't the gun she uses. No way, it can't be…I fired a burst at her as I ran out from my cover. When she popped back up again, I had a kick waiting for her. Falling to the ground, I was able to disarm her. Now let's see if my suspicions are correct…

"It's been a while, Doppelganger" I said as I aimed my gun at his forehead.

"You're wasting your time. Your friends have already located the World Object…and Lady Serenity will be there to pry it from their cold, dead hands!" he said as he began laughing. Damn it, I'll finish you off later. I summoned away my gun as I frantically ran about the mountain. Oh crap…I don't know where they are. I really should take the time to ask about these kinds of things. I was about to head back when I heard the tourists screaming in the distance. Where there's screaming, Serenity and company can't be far.

One of the tourists pointed at the source of their fear. A chimera was flying in the skies above. That's not _that_ scary…then again considering how it shouldn't even exist, it's no surprise. I get the idea that's Doppelganger though. He sure gets back up pretty quickly. I really should make sure that next time he stays down, _permanently_. I followed him right back to Serenity and the others. After more bushwhacking I found myself at a cave entrance. Typical…

"Konata, whatever you do, don't let go!" yelled Haruhi. Konata, Alan and her friends had made a human bridge to reach the pedestal where LuckyStar was. Only in the Fictional World could they have come up with a plan that insane…

"What happened?" I asked Haruhi, the only one not part of the bridge.

"Konata ran over to get it when the ground collapsed. I dunno how we're going to get them all back up" Haruhi said worriedly. A quandary indeed and, if Serenity's in here, then it'll just get worse. Now how can we get them back up? If they let go I doubt they'll be able to keep holding on to each other. Guess we have no choice…

"Alan, Kagami do you think you can hold onto Miyuki and Tsukasa?" I yelled out to them.

"What about Konata?" the two of them yelled back.

"If we can get the rest of you back up, Konata will be able to climb up on the pedestal" I said to them. Konata yelled at them to hurry up and listen already. Haruhi and I joined Alan in helping him to hold onto the rest of the girls. As Tsukasa let go, the three of us strained to keep them up. Eventually we managed to bring all three of them up from the gaping chasm. Konata on the other hand was stuck on the pedestal, having retrieved LuckyStar. The next thing really threw us all off.

With a blaze of fire, Konata turned into Shana. Serenity was in for a nasty surprise when she appeared behind her atop chimera Doppelganger. With a swing of her sword, she shot a fireball that nearly knocked Serenity off. Angered that someone else beat her to LuckyStar she began to fire at Konata. A pair of fiery wings erupted forth from her back as she flew about, distracting Serenity. I took out my Buster Shot, charging up a shot. Alright, time to bring you back to earth, Doppelganger. I fired off the charged shot and shot off one of Doppelganger's wings. Unfortunately Serenity opened a dimensional doorway right below the two of them, sliding out.

Konata returned back to normal as her transformation drained her of her energy. No longer able to fly, she plummeted down into the chasm. Like hell I'm letting her die like this. I ran towards the chasm and jumped as far as I could. Catching Konata, I hoped to God that there would be a ledge we could fall onto or grab. I held out my hand against the chasm wall in the faint hopes that it would slow us down. Oddly enough, we came to a complete stop. But why does it feel like I'm grabbing the wall?

I looked up at my right arm. Rather than having the form of a human arm and hand, it now looked more like Larkecius's hand. My fingers, which resembled talons more than fingers, were embedded into the wall explaining why we came to a sudden stop. It's great we're fine now, but how are we supposed to get back up? Everyone was all the way on the other side where none of them could reach us. If only I still had Blaze Slide…

As I clung to the wall I saw a red chain-sword wrap around my arm. That's the Chain Rod which means Rika has just come to our rescue. Looking up and back, I watched as Rika pulled us towards her. Dislodging from the wall, I ended up slamming into the opposite wall. The point is to save us, not inadvertently kill us both. With a great heave, Rika pulled the two of us back up without incident. I looked at my transformed arm curiously before it returned back to normal. I suppose it was just a defensive reflex of some sort. I highly doubt I'll be seeing it like that anytime soon.

"'Capable' my ass. You almost got yourself killed trying to save this civilian!" scolded Rika.

"She's the owner of this World Object now. As long as she's alive, Serenity won't be able to use its power. And anyway, old habits die hard" I nonchalantly replied as a joke. I laid Konata down on the ground where her friends attended to her. Heroic antics never quite lose their charm even as a 'normal' person. Though as Rika said, I shouldn't get in the habit of doing such things. My body has many more limitations now.

"We've secured the area, Rika" said Mato as she entered the cave. When she saw me she asked in surprise, "Riku? Why would Kanata send you on a mission like this without being able to use your slider ability?"

"Just because I'm powerless, doesn't mean I'm a pushover. I still have Jon's Object as well. No one ever said that normal people couldn't be badass" I jokingly replied. Though I can understand where she's coming from. Being my top rival back at Fantasia, she's certainly knowledgeable, skilled and powerful. Being mobilized on a mission like this probably means she thought it was far too high risk for us.

I carried out Konata as we all exited the cave. Telling us to watch our backs, Rika and her team slid away. I'm pretty sure if Konata's friends didn't believe us before, they do now. Soon after they left, Konata woke up. She was dead tired at first but quickly recovered back to her usual self. She told us that she wished she could become a Slider in order to protect Haruhi and everyone else. Alan said that her slider ability should be called Cosplay. An appropriate name, Alan.

With the day coming to a close we all decided to head back. Everyone ended up across each other on the train. Konata and her group were fast asleep, undoubtedly exhausted by the day's events. For their first encounter with things beyond this world they certainly did well. With Konata becoming a slider I'm sure she'll be happy to know she can visit her mom. They've got quite a bit of catching up to do.

As for my group, it was only Haruhi fast asleep. Hard to believe that she actually managed to exhaust herself. Alan kindly gave up his seat to let Haruhi sleep on the seat they were sharing. I couldn't help but feel empathic for Haruhi as she kept calling out for Kyon. I knew she liked him, just not how much. I suppose I know now. Alan took off a jade necklace he was wearing and put it on Haruhi.

"Saki gave it to me as a gift. She said that it's been passed down generations of her family as a symbol of wishing the wearer happiness. I don't mind giving it to Haruhi. She needs it more than I do anyway" he said to me while smiling at Haruhi. Aw, that's cute. Oddly enough a smile dawned across her troubled face as she began to sleep soundly. What do you know, a charm that actually works.

"Do you think we should take Konata with us when we slide out of this world?" he asked me. Hmm that's a good question.

"Her ability is certainly much more powerful than I expected. She would certainly be a welcome addition to our team. However the problem that plagues our team is inexperience. If we do take her in, I believe it would be in everyone's vested interest to start studying at Fantasia. Although I'm not entirely sure how Haruhi will react to that" I replied. I think I might have rambled but that about sums up my opinions.

"I think we can disobey Haruhi this time. If I learned anything today, it's that Serenity can, and will, hand our asses to us. If Konata wasn't so lucky or a quick thinker, we'd all be dead by now" he answered. Sorry Haruhi, but majority wins this time.

"I'll tell Konata and Haruhi about our plan. If this goes through I won't be able to guide you through the entry process since I'm already a second year student. I trust you three will be fine?" I asked him.

"It can't be that hard, can it?" he asked back. Oh it could be. Though I'll have to wait and see. Some time later we arrived and I woke everyone up. Konata's friends went their separate ways as the rest of us headed back to Konata's house. Still quite exhausted, Konata ended up getting a piggyback ride off of Alan. Alan shot me a look, probably wondering why I wasn't the one carrying her. I'd rather not reinforce the fact that I'm a lolicon.

As soon as we got inside, Haruhi collapsed on the couch. Alan motioned for me to talk to Haruhi about my suggestion as he brought Konata to her room. Of course I have to do that. May as well get this over with.

"Alan and I were talking on the train and I thought it might be a good idea if you three got some training as Sliders before we keep going. If Konata hadn't used LuckyStar today I doubt things would've ended well" I told her. She seemed to think it over seriously before she gave me a reply.

"Will it help?" she asked me back.

"It helped me. It'll give all of us a chance to get used to our slider abilities. Our team's problem is the lack of experience. If we attend Fantasia then we can fix that. It'll be all for naught if we end up dying against Serenity and her organization" I answered. Sadly an actual adventure does in fact involve calculating the chance of death.

"Then, as Supreme Commander of the SOS Brigade, I hereby order all present members to attend Fantasia. So now that the complicated stuff's out of the way, mind telling me why I'm wearing Alan's necklace?" inquired Haruhi as she fiddled around with it.

"You had a troubled look on your face when you were sleeping on the train. The necklace was a gift he received from Saki back in the Real World. Supposedly, according to him, it brings its owner happiness. He said that you could get more use out of it than him" I answered back. When Alan came into the living room she gave him a hug saying thank you. Damn that thing works too well. With his arrival Haruhi told him that she agreed with my suggestion. All that's left is to wait for Konata to wake up.

This happened seconds later. She came into the living room to play on her game console. Haruhi told her what we had planned, that she too was included being a new Brigade member. Being Konata, she eagerly agreed. That's good and all but there's no point in going now. Everyone's exhausted to some degree. It would seem I'm no exception to that…

"Hey, Riku, are you feeling better?" asked Haruhi when I woke up. The sun was shining brightly outside. I knew that I passed out but I didn't realize that I ended up sleeping the whole night through. I didn't feel that tired beforehand…Perhaps the adrenaline rush wearing off? No, that can't be it. More than likely it's my body getting adjusted to using my new power…whatever it is. I could tell everyone was just waiting for me to wake up. Guess now that everyone's rested up, we should go. Alan opened another dimensional doorway for us. He and Haruhi stepped through, leaving me behind with Konata. Before we go through there's something I want to ask her…

"How exactly are you going to cover up your sudden disappearance?" I asked her.

Giving me a mischievous smirk she replied, "Oh, I took care of that…" before she stepped through.

Enh? Well no use worrying about it now. I'm sure it'll be fine…


	43. Chapter 42

Chapter 42: First Test

"In order to attend Fantasia you must pass two sets of exams. The first is your recommendation exam. This is an exam to earn a DSO member's recognition. The second is the entrance exam itself" I explained to the three of them. Commanders Rewrite, Kelowna and Izumi had joined us for my explanation. With my brief explanation done the three of them ended up getting paired with a Commander whose recommendation they would earn. Kelowna's choice was the easy going (and lazy just like her…) Alan. Rewrite went with Haruhi. Oh the hilarity that'll ensue…Naturally, mother and daughter ended up together.

Just like Saya did with me, I escorted the three of them to the same exam center I went to. The proctor there was the same one that had supervised my own exam. He looked at the trio with quite a bit of interest.

"I shouldn't be expecting anything crazy should I?" he asked me. That's right I almost forgot about the incident regarding my own exam.

"Depends on what you mean by 'crazy'" I jokingly replied. He responded with a nervous laugh. I wouldn't worry about it. They won't bust stuff up…yet.

I watched the three of them clowning around in the waiting room. Typical Haruhi…the plan is always go in with all guns blazing. She really should consider other tactics. Since this is the same proctor as my exam, they'll be doing the escort exam. Of course this time it won't have literal life or death implications. I really should convince them to get outfits more suited to this kind of thing. After all, sailor style uniforms plus over the top action can only provide gratuitous fanservice. Though I'm sure I won't hear Alan complaining about that. Being led into the simulation room, they entered the simulation and started their exam. Certainly this'll be amusing…

* * *

I guess she's the one we're supposed to be escorting. She looks like Solipse's polar opposite. She excitedly bounded towards us when she saw us. Enthusiastically introducing herself as Ange, she pointed out why she couldn't go down the mountain path. That's just great…Demons were scattered all along the path. So how exactly are we supposed to get her down without _any_ of us getting killed?

Haruhi took off the necklace I gave her. With a whip like snap it turned into a laser whip. Oh so it's Haruhi Belmont now? She even went so far as getting a costume change. Now she actually looks like a Belmont…Konata turned into a middle school girl. Sparks were wildly flying off her hands and head. Of course she Cosplay's into a character I don't recognize. Just hope it's useful.

The two of them began to run down the path without me or Ange. The resulting bursts of light below can only mean that they're doing just fine on their own. Taking Ange's hand in mine we ran after the two of them. The first few terraces were cleared out pretty quickly by Haruhi and Konata. This isn't so hard. But it sucks that I haven't gotten in on the action yet.

We were about halfway down when we were stopped by a pair of glowing orbs. Wait aren't those…? Uh oh…The first one turned into a perfect copy of Haruhi while the other copied Konata's transformation. Copy Haruhi charged at Haruhi. Their whips were clashing more like energy swords rather than whips. And that look on Copy Haruhi's face…it's so freaking creepy. Her copy kept her on the evasive, dodging the erratic swings of her copy's laser whip. She managed to keep dodging until Copy Haruhi finally hit her. The blow sent her flying back but she just shrugged it off. You're kidding me…she takes a hit from a laser whip and the only thing she gets is a singe mark on her clothes? Obviously pissed at her copy she swung her whip, wrapping it around her copy's neck. She pulled her copy towards her. The 'oh crap' look on her copy's face was priceless. When her copy got in range she gave her the same Falcon Punch she gave me when I saw her naked…ramped up to eleven. The poor copy didn't even recoil, it just disappeared.

Then there was Konata's fight with her copy. The lightning they were throwing at each other was accompanied by thunder. Since they're so close to us the thunder left me with a ringing sound in my ears. Copy Konata fired off a shot in my direction. It felt like a cannonball just hit my barrier at point blank range. Konata was able to keep counterattacking but even I can tell she won't be able to keep it up. Her copy finally managed to overwhelm her, a shot knocking her back. While she was incapacitated her copy tried to finish her off. I put a barrier right in front of her copy's attack. Her attack detonated in front of her sending her flying back. By the time she realized what was going on Konata was standing over her. The look on Konata's face as she blasted her copy away screamed 'you just freaking lose'.

The rest of the way wasn't too hard. There were a few times where I had to put up a barrier as a few Demons tried to take pot shots at Ange. Soon enough we were at the bottom of the mountain and almost reached the end of the path. So where's the final boss? Oh there it is. At least I think it is. I mean why else would a guy dressed in a suit be standing in the middle of a path? Konata jumped the gun by firing a shot off at him. I don't blame you…

Sadly he just deflected it away like it was nothing. I'm pretty sure you can't deflect lightning. He unsheathed a rapier that he had hidden in his cane. Why didn't I see that coming? Whoever he was he charged at Konata, ready to drive his rapier through her head. Haruhi intercepted his thrust parrying it to the ground then punching him square in the face. Oh, so your whip doubles as a beam rapier?

"My, how unrefined the two of you are. No matter…I shall simply remove you both from my sight" he snidely told the two of them. You have _no_ idea who you're messing with…

Haruhi ended up engaging him in a fencing match. She really does become an instant expert in almost anything she does. Even the guy is having trouble keeping up. She managed to royally piss the guy off by cutting his cheek. Sure they might be unrefined but that doesn't change the fact they kick ass. Konata managed to sneak up behind him, tap him on the shoulder and give him a facepalm of lightning. Somebody just got owned big time.

With a sinister laugh he got back on his feet. "I've gravely underestimated you both. I shan't show either of you louts any mercy this time!" angrily proclaimed the unnamed Demon.

This time he managed to at least match Haruhi's skill level. The barrage of thrusts and slashes managed to keep Haruhi from going on the attack that much. This time Konata was fighting him too, firing off lightning bolts at the Demon. Even she was held at bay since he easily switched from attacking Haruhi to deflecting Konata's shots. Oh great he wasn't really trying before. This isn't looking good. This'll just be a stalemate at this rate. Telling Ange to get behind some cover I jumped in to join the fight.

He didn't even see me join in as I drop kicked him on the face. I grabbed his arm that he was wielding his rapier in and pulled it into an awkward position until I heard the sickening tearing sound of his tendons and ligaments being torn. Then I kicked his knees in to achieve the same effect. He crumpled down on his only good knee screaming in pain. Moving behind him I snapped his neck. Still alive, eh? Not for much longer…I put on my Object and placed my hand on his head. Burn in hell, scum.

Haruhi and Konata backed away as I walked towards them. I don't understand…why do you two look so scared? Ange moved between them and me. She held up a mirror so I could see my face. Normally I just look at everything lazily. Now my face was contorted into a look I haven't seen since my days as a thief and assassin. I guess some things just don't change after all. I put on what I just realized was my façade expression. Haruhi and Konata relaxed a little as we headed to the end of the path.

As the simulation began to dissolve away I heard Ange say to me "Everyone has a dark side. Just don't let it become you."

* * *

I wouldn't expect any less of those three. Though their teamwork could use some work. It's been a long time since I've seen that side of Alan, the one that lusts for the thrill of a good fight. I wouldn't say that it's bad per se but it's definitely something he'll have to make sure he keeps in check. The proctor handed them their recommendations when I joined them.

"So how did you like that little experience?" I asked them.

"So is that what it's like to be a Slider?" asked Konata.

"A bit tougher than you thought wasn't it?" I answered.

"That was nothing! I'll take on whatever you can dish out!" exclaimed Haruhi. Glad to see they don't regret the choice they've made. I headed outside with them to get some fresh air. I told them to head to Kanata's home to get some rest. They can't really rush things since the entrance exam isn't until tomorrow. I, on the other hand, have an appointment with Rika at Fantasia.

After heading into Fantasia I headed to one of the simulation rooms we use for combat training. Sure enough, Rika was waiting for me inside. She seems to be sporting a new outfit. It reminds me of Ciel's commander outfit except the colors have been swapped so instead of pink and white it was scarlet and black. Floating out of her long coat's pocket, Model O rested in her palm. She cried out "Megamerge" as her outfit was replaced by her stylized blood red armour. It seems her hair stays black now; somewhat odd considering it should turn bleached blonde. The simulation room we were in turned into an arena. Once the both of us were ready, we started to spar a little.

"Have you been able to determine how to turn your arm back into that form from before?" she asked me while we were taking a break.

"Yeah, just give me a second" I replied. I concentrated on turning my arm back into the form I had used to grab onto the wall.

"I can assume that this isn't our untapped power?" questioned Rika.

"Definitely not. It's just a manifestation of whatever it really is. Although I think I've learned to do some cool new things with it…" I answered. My arm turned back to normal as an energy sword like the Z Sabre appeared in my hands. I kept swapping through the different weapons I could make with it. Too bad that's all I can do with it…for now.

"Well at least it's a step forward. Just tell me if you make anymore progress" she told me. The room returned back to normal. Turning back to normal herself, she bid me farewell. Well I should get back to the three of them.

I'm sure Haruhi will coax me into making a celebratory meal anyway…


	44. Chapter 43

Chapter 43: Second Test

"You all rested up?" Riku asked as we headed towards wherever the exam was being held. I would've slept in but I'm too pumped up for this. This is a pretty exciting way of doing school entrance exams. Holy…that's a school? I thought Riku's house was the biggest, fanciest thing I've ever seen. This place is easily a hundred times better. Haruhi and Konata seemed equally awestruck. We headed inside where Riku helped us register for the exam. He left after saying the lobby is for participants only. He added that he would be watching so they better do a good job. Great that just made me nervous…

How many people are in here anyway? I know it's pretty big but I'm sure there's no way everyone can fit in here. Maybe it just expands? Haruhi ended up having an argument with a group of guys. Guess she wants the table. They went on rambling about how they don't take any orders from anybody else but someone called the Snow Princess. Konata disappeared for a moment before coming back, using Cosplay to look like Kanata. I think you could easily pass as your mom without having to do that.

"So harassing Commander North's daughter wasn't enough for you? Do you not know who this young lady is?" Konata asked the group. The group remained respectful to her due to her appearance, but I could tell they had no clue what Konata was talking about.

"Why I'm the almighty Supreme Commander of the SOS Brigade, Haruhi Suzumiya! Bow down before me plebeians!" she proclaimed with exceptional authority. I don't think you needed to add the 'plebeian' part.

"What kind of ridiculous group would name themselves after a mayday signal? I refuse to bow down before an insignificant, arrogant little girl. Even if a Commander is ordering me to do so" retorted who I guess is their leader. His minions nodded in agreement. Hey man, I suggest you cooperate. You do _not_ want to know what happened to the last club leader that messed with Haruhi.

Oh God here it comes…She grabbed their leader's hand and dragged him towards Konata. He then proceeded to place his hand on her chest, pushed them together and then knocking them both on the ground in the position most people would immediately guess. She then snapped plenty of photos with a camera that she materialized. Konata turned beet red and, if it were possible, smoke would be coming out her ears and nose right about now. The poor fan club leader could only stay completely still in utter shock of molesting who everyone thought was a real Commander.

"Then I'll just say you fucked Commander Izumi against her will~! Give us the table and I'll give you the camera, deal?" she said giving him an innocent looking smile. I can feel the aura of malice coming off her in deluging waves. He immediately agreed and got the camera from Haruhi. He then put on his Object, a pair of brass knuckles, and pummelled the 'evidence' into oblivion.

"Don't think you'll get away with this!" he said as his club cleared the table.

Haruhi pulled out an SD card. Wait is that…? She said to him in a threatening manner, "A good leader always has a Plan B, so I suggest you think twice before you try that!" If the guy had no more dignity to lose he probably would've fainted on the spot. He and his club stormed off as Haruhi began laughing triumphantly. I went over to Konata who was still trying to digest what just happened to her.

"Konata are you alright…?" I asked her gently.

"He…violated me…He must DIE!" she yelled out, snapping out of her daze. That's definitely different from Mikuru's reaction. You're back to normal at least. I just hope Kanata and/or Riku didn't see that. Surely there'll be hell to pay if they did.

Commander Kelowna appeared before all of us and, with her voice magically amplified, asked for everyone's attention. Everyone immediately looked in her direction. Or maybe it was her wicked looking scythe. Yeah, it's definitely her scythe. She told them that the exam would be a battle royale. Oh this is _not_ gonna end well for a certain someone. I saw Konata look at him like he had just been targeted for termination. Commander Kelowna said that people would be allowed to form teams. Everyone began talking to each other trying to form teams. Some of them were just pairs while other groups had up to a dozen people in them. Haruhi signed up the three of us as a group. When everyone was set, the room disappeared in a blinding flash.

When the room materialized again we were in the middle of a plain. Haruhi yelled at us to get ready as a trio tried to attack us. The trio were taken down by three beams of pink light as I heard Rika's familiar voice cry out "Trio: Ragnarok Requiem!" She ran up to us with her own team. Konata turned back to herself and copied Rika. Without saying a word she left. Commence bloody rampage. "I don't see that ending well. I think we should follow her" Rika said as she motioned for her team to follow. The rainforest we were running towards disappeared in a flash of pink light. Rika laughed and said that Konata was a quick learner. Even from here we could hear her yelling "Out of my way noobs! He must DIE!" In a serious tone Rika said that it would be difficult for her to remain in control due to Omega's bloodlust. I think it's Copy Omega that's in for the ride, not Konata.

"Well while we're still around I'd like to introduce you to my team. The girl here in the kimono and black hair is Aisha. The one in the futuristic uniform is Alice Toki. The other Commanders insisted that I do the exam to legitimately enter Fantasia" she said as we ran after Konata following her path of destruction. Wait they actually let Rika in without doing the exams? A trio of survivors from Konata's rampage were mowed down easily by Rika's double shot and energy wave combo. Alice pouted and said that Konata was hogging all the fun. Aisha retorted by saying that at least the only ones that'll be left will be worthy adversaries.

Sure enough Aisha was right. A group consisting of a dozen people ambushed us. I immediately set up a barrier around our entire group. Alice took out a submachine gun that looked unusually similar to Riku and Rika's Buster Shot. "Locking unto maximum number of targets. Target locks established. Pulse Repeater prepped for homing fire" said a monotonous male voice. Did her visor just talk? She fired half a dozen purple beams which flew out of the barrier. A few seconds later it said "Targets neutralized. Cooling down" as a few vents on her gun opened up discharging excess heat.

Aisha pulled out her twin katanas as a pair of horns grew from her head. Whoa wait, is she a Demon? In a guttural voice she said "Save your strength for the coming battles Furude Ojou-sama. I shall handle the remnants of their force" as she jumped out. I take it panicked screaming equals ass kicking? I took down the barrier to check. Sure enough the few of them remaining tried to fight back. Aisha was just a moving blur and the only sign of her attacks were the absurdly perfect slash marks going right through her targets.

"Hey Rika…is she a Demon?" I asked her.

"Yep. A Greater Half-Daemon to be precise. Her mother is a Greater Daemon and her father is a normal human. I don't think I need to finish explaining for you to get the idea" she said to me. Yep no need to finish, I get the idea.

"Your friend is insane by the way. She's managed to eliminate three quarters of the participants _by herself_. Though I guess her array of kill sats are helping" remarked Alice. We could see the storm of pink beams all around us in the distance. The kill sats are definitely helping.

"Don't call her insane; she's just venting some anger. Wanna see why?" said Haruhi as she pulled out the SD card. Uh, lets not. I told Haruhi to put it away and we continued taking out anybody else that was left. Haruhi and Rika took point, slashing or lunging at anyone that got in our way with their energy sword and beam rapier. Man I'm not getting any action again…By the time we caught up to Konata the only remaining teams were ours and the fan club. So they were pretty skilled after all. That, or anyone stupid enough to jump them ended up becoming an unintentional meatshield. I feel better believing my second opinion.

"Is it just me or do I hear the remixed version of One Winged Angel?" Haruhi asked us. Come to think of it, I do hear it. Although I'm pretty sure Konata replaced Sephiroth's name with hers. That's actually pretty badass…Hopefully she doesn't accidently vaporize us…

"I knew Ragnarok Requiem had an Orchestra setting but not a rock band one!" replied Rika as she burst out laughing. So it's an orchestral/rock band orbital bombardment via an array of kill sats? We didn't get a chance to contemplate that for long since Konata had finished taking out the fan club. We were a bit unsure what we should do as she started walking towards us.

With her typical lazy smile she said "I feel better now. A little rampage is an awesome way to relieve stress." I'm pretty sure that's the Ax Crazy Copy Omega talking. On another note why hasn't the exam ended yet?

"Here comes the fun part! Now our teams have to face off against each other!" Haruhi exclaimed excitedly. Really?

Rika dashed up to Konata who was ready to retaliate. When their swords clashed they made a massive shockwave that almost knocked me down. "Fate would have me face another copy of myself. This time however Rika and I will be victorious!" yelled out Model O. "Orchestra: Ragnarok Requiem!" Konata and Rika cried out in unison. The pair of massive intertwining beams engulfed both of them. Well at least they died an epic death. Haruhi wasted no time using her whip to pull Alice towards her for a barrage of thrusts from her beam rapier. Unfortunately I ended up getting assassinated by Aisha before I could see how it all ended.

"Well I got taken out much more easily than I thought" said Rika as she and Konata collapsed in a pair of seats, exhausted. The two of them had a good laugh about it.

"Gah, that girl took me out so easily! I didn't even see her attack coming…" fumed Alice.

"Hey, Aisha did the same thing to me so don't whine…" I said to Alice. I wonder how Haruhi is doing.

Aisha appeared a few minutes later saying "That fight was…exhilarating. I have never gone up against such a powerful opponent before. I can say without hesitation that no words could describe it…"

Shortly afterwards Haruhi appeared crashing onto the fan club leader proclaiming "A triumphant victory for the SOS Brigade!" Seriously…what happened in there?

* * *

"Um…what happened?" I asked Kanata.

"I'm not sure…" replied Kanata. We, along with the rest of the spectators, were greeted by static during the final fight. I doubt anyone but Haruhi or that Half-Demon knows what transpired within. Unfortunately for us the Half-Demon was utterly speechless and Haruhi was too busy celebrating. I assume much epic ass kicking ensued? I suppose no one but those two will ever really know.

The rankings popped up showing all of the participants' standing. Konata and Rika tied for 4th place with Konata getting special mention for eliminating a solid 75% of the participants. I wonder what sparked that bloody rampage…Alan placed 3rd without doing anything but blocking. As if to joke about it he got special mention for being a pacifist survivalist by placing third without scoring a single kill. And of course Haruhi placed 1st in her unknown epic showdown with the Half-Demon.

"Well at least Kona-chan did excellently, eh Kanata?" I said to congratulate her daughter's outstanding performance.

"I definitely wasn't expecting that…Although I wonder what had her so upset…" she contemplated. Perhaps I'll ask her when I congratulate her. I'm surprised that failure fan club managed to place pretty high on the rankings. Although Konata's rampage might explain that.

As the three of them exited Fantasia, people parted for Haruhi and Konata. A 750:1 kill/death ratio and an epic showdown is a pretty easy way to earn a reputation. I heard the fan club leader say that Konata's title should be Bloody Lolita. I told him that he better not spread that around or I'll see to it that he regrets doing so. I finally managed to reach the three of them to congratulate them.

"So Konata, what inspired your crazy killing spree?" I asked her. She told Haruhi to make a camera so I could view the pictures. After loading a SD card into it, Haruhi switched it to viewing mode. The following images I saw had me stuck between utter hilarity of Haruhi repeating what she did to Mikuru and sheer terror and shock. There'd be hell to pay if her mother ever saw this. I immediately snatched the camera and SD card, threw it on the ground, made a gun and proceeded to vaporize it. _No one_ should ever see those pictures. I did my best to purge the images from my mind but I fear that my old 'tendencies' may keep it forever burned into my subconscious.

"You know the fan club leader did that too" noted Alan.

"But thankfully an intrepid leader always has a Plan C to Z!" exclaimed Haruhi as she pulled out twenty four other SD cards which I can only assume has the contents of the one I just destroyed. This would be hilarity on a scale never before seen by mankind if it wasn't for the fact Kanata will kill all of us for letting her daughter get violated _while looking like her_.

We're screwed…

* * *

Author's Notes: I hope you enjoyed the action triple bill. As always, leave a review to comment or criticize.


	45. Chapter 44

Chapter 44: First Day

"Hey where did you get all this Riku?" asked Konata as she held the clothes I (her mom actually but she said for me to take the credit…) bought the three of them. Considering how much different the curriculum is here, they'll need much more comfortable clothes.

"I paid Maguro to get them for me. I still can't slide so I had to get some help" I replied to her. As for me I'm still wearing the same outfit. Although I took off the right arm sleeve since I was getting fed up having to repair it every time I conjured my claw for my spars with Rika. So for better or worse, my sleek mercury black arm was displayed for everyone to see; although now there were glowing red magic conduits in it.

I felt pretty bad wrecking what I believe to be Friedrich's home, Estate. Ever since Haruhi's world was purged from existence I haven't been able to anchor it in Celestia. On the plus side the dorms here at Fantasia are amongst the most posh domiciles in Celestia. Considering how stressful it is to be a Slider it only makes sense that their dorms would optimize comfort and relaxation. Haruhi and the others have grown accustomed to it in the week that we've been here, though I can still see they're homesick.

Dressed in the new clothes Kanata got for them, we headed to Fantasia. Though we've been here for the last week, these three haven't bothered to look for their homeroom. Not surprisingly I'm here helping them find their room. Since most of the teachers here has been teaching for quite some time they've grown quite attached to their classroom. I recognized their room as one which had just been recently completed (from my perspective it's been over half a year though) so I'm quite curious as to whom the new teacher is. Without too much trouble we finally found their room as the three of them sat together by the windows. Perhaps I can get an answer from Mato or Solipse about who the new teacher is.

Turns out I didn't need to. His voice, both full of mirth and authority, called out to me as I began to leave. Dressed in his trademark blue pirate regalia, there stood the Divine, Maguro Hamachi, at the teacher's lectern. It would seem one of his students was blocking my view of him. He and North both seem to share the same quality of appearing in childlike forms. I immediately returned and greeted him.

"By the way matey, I'll need your help after school tomorrow. As part of your payment you'll be helping me repair some damages incurred getting those goods for you, gar" he said in his childish, pirate-like voice. I looked out the windows, where there was a great view of the seaside port. His trusty ship (more akin to a spaceship might I add), _Principle of Charity_, was docked at the port looking good as new just as it always has been. Had the _Charity_ taken some interior damage?

"If ye be wonderin', the damage was to another ship. It came in to help me and the crew out after we started taking some fire. Unfortunately in the end they took the brunt of the damage. The crew and I feel bad that they put themselves in harm's way. In return we promised to repair their ship. The captain was a mighty fine, and good looking might I add, lass by the name of Prairie" he finished. Prairie? What an odd name. Sounds familiar though. Perhaps from one of the older videogames I owned back in the Real World. Of course I agreed to his offer. It's been a while since my technological knowledge has been used. Well I better get going.

"Good to see new faces around here. I'm your teacher for this year, Maguro Hamachi. As some of you know, I'm a Divine. Unlike most known Divines, I travel from world to world. I'm in the business of giving tours to non-sliders as well as getting goods; all for the right price of course!" he said rather professionally without his pirate accent. He sounded a bit more mature too. Maybe he's just like that around people he knows well…Still feels like he's a pirate though. Who knew there was a pirate god?

Wow…Haruhi is actually paying attention. Who could blame her? Our teacher looks like a shota in a pirate outfit. I shuddered to think what she might do to Okabe-sensei when she restores her world. I personally would not like to see him like that. Konata seems to have it in her head that he's a cosplayer. Again, not that hard to understand why. Sounds like he's about to give us our orientation…

"All of you are considered Initiates. This isn't just a school for education in the traditional sense. As you have all passed your exams, you all should know that we're training you to be future Sliders. Whether you stay here in Celestia or travel from world to world, the knowledge and skills you learn here will help you. A Slider is not just an adventurer or traveller. We are wandering vanguards. We protect worlds from threats within their world as well as from beyond. Remember your duty as you begin to slide, but don't forget to have fun!" he finished. Enh, not much different from other orientations or opening ceremonies speech I've heard before.

He led us in an icebreaker. We were supposed to introduce ourselves to the people sitting around us. Good thing Haruhi and Konata sat on either side of me. I probably should introduce myself to the girl in front of me.

"Hey, my name is Alan Kurayami. I'm for the Real World" I said lazily to her. Oh hey, it's Alice.

"Really? I'm from the Real World too! My science fair project went a little AWOL and it transported me here" she said as she pulled out a small PDA-like device. She called it a DTD or Dimensional Travel Device. Reminds me of Mikuru's TPDD. She took out another PDA-like device. Where is she stashing all this? She's wearing a skirt for pity's sake. She explained that back in her world it was just a regular cellphone with an AI she designed. Turns out here in the Fictional World it's an Object. So that's where she got the gun and visor from before.

I turned around behind me after we finished our little introduction. It was the bespectacled fan club leader. Oh you must be in hell right now. He looks like a non-threatening version of the Student Council President. "Let's just get this over with. I'm Yorrick from the World of To Aru Majutsu No Index. Aside from my Object, Bruiser, I have the esper power to alter my physical capabilities" he replied. Finally a name to tack onto the unknown. No use being a jerk to him. After all, the conflict was Haruhi's fault. I introduced myself to him saying that I don't have any ill will towards him. He just scoffed at that and reclined in his seat with his arms crossed. Alas, poor Yorrick. At least he's not just a skull.

Haruhi seems to have all the guys fawning over her. That was until she gave her introduction speech. Then they all slowly backed away from her like she could snap at any moment. Which she may. Anyhow she's already taken guys. Still have no idea what Kyon sees in her. Sure she's hot, but she's weirder than weird. Konata seemed to be garnering the interests of the otakus in the class. Considering where some of them are from she's bound to find manga and anime that exist only there.

"Nice to meet you again Kurayami-san. I am Aisha. I am an inhabitant of Celestia. My goal in becoming a Slider is to show others that Demons are not all mindless beasts. There are some out there with quite heartbreaking stories and a side far more human than one can imagine. As you have already seen, my Object are my twin katanas, Yin and Yang. My power, Purify, allows me to turn Demons into pure human souls as well as taming Demons such as Salamanders and Gergoths" she told me as I turned around. I'll have to take her word for that. So far the only Demons I've run into wanted nothing more than for me to be extra dead.

Well guess there's nothing else to do but to listen to whatever else Mr. Hamachi has to say…

"Solipse! I wasn't expecting you here today" I said to her.

"Actually I was looking for you, Riku-kun. Can you spare me a few moments?" she asked me without a hint of shyness in her tone. It would seem that I'm the only one who gets to hear her like this unless we're on a mission or request.

Together, we headed up to the school roof. This place offers total privacy during the first years' orientation…or so I hear. She gestured for me to sit with her on a bench. She seemed worried and fidgeted quite a bit. Let me jump the gun Solipse.

"Is it about what happened in Nanoha's world?" I asked her. She blushed red. Blushing like that makes her look irresistibly cute. But I know this isn't the time for that.

"Yes…I wanted to apologize for my impulsiveness" she replied. Oddly enough that was my first kiss. For someone who seems so shy and apprehensive she's has a kiss to die for. I doubt I'll ever forget that sensation, a combination of warm supple lips and her cool icy breath. The only kiss that has topped that would be my first kiss with Alice where I swear the world came to a standstill for a few moments.

"You're right, it was a bit impulsive. But other than that you shouldn't be apologizing. Even though you were shy you gathered enough courage to profess your feelings to me. You even threw in a kiss! If anything you should be proud of your accomplishment. Professing your feelings of affection for someone will never get any easier, but you've proven to yourself that you can and that's what counts" I said to comfort her. Surely the true question is about to be asked…

"I want to know though…Do you love me as well?" she asked confidently. That's the one thing I love about both Alice and Solipse, their wellspring of strength. After working up the courage to apologize to me the least I can do is give her an honest answer.

"Yes, I do. Though you might already know what I'm going to say next…" I answered.

"'I love Alice more' right? I understand now what that means. This is just the first step, right? I'll find that special someone for me too!" she replied happily. I'm glad she understands and is ready to move on. Though I'm sure she's hurting a little somewhere inside for being rejected.

"Riku-kun…? What's wrong?" she asked. I was crying. No not crying…sobbing. It feels both like I lost the most important people in my life as well as being freed from endless torture. But from what? It was just a feeling, no memories attached. At least not one I can remember clearly. Is there something I haven't learned about myself yet?

"I'm…fine I guess," I answered as I wiped away my tears and regained my composure, "I just felt really sad and really happy at the same time. I don't know why though…"

"I'm glad you're okay," she replied, "If you ever need me, you know I'll always be there for you as your best friend!"

We sat there in blissful silence until the first years' orientation ended. I began to think to myself that maybe I was wrong in pushing Haruhi and Kyon together. Maybe they mistook an intimate friendship for love. Well there's not much I can do about it now. I suppose only time will tell.


	46. Chapter 45

Chapter 45: Guardian Base

I wonder how I must look like to everyone around me right now. Here I am running as fast as my body could take me dragging Rika and Ciel along. On a more serious note I'm about to be late for my repayment. Hopefully Maguro doesn't think like Haruhi. Well I doubt anyone thinks like Haruhi.

"Late! Penalty, gar!" he said in his familiar pirate accent. You're kidding me…I'd rather not walk the plank on a ship that travels in interdimensional space. "Nah, I'm just joking with you matey. I've been hearing Haruhi say that to poor Alan all day" he said slapping me on the back with quite a bit of force. I wonder what would've happened if he met Tsuruya. I'm certain hilarity that would make the whole world laugh would ensue.

"I brought along a couple friends who have some business in that world. And don't worry I paid for their tickets" I told him as we boarded the _Charity_. I facepalmed as I saw the name of his ship emblazoned on the side. He's rather greedy and yet his ship is called _Principle of Charity_. So he really did love irony then. Although what he's doing now makes me think he's not as greedy as he seems. And I know from personal experience that he's a kind and dependable person.

Standing in the bridge, we all watched as the _Charity_ soundlessly rose from the water up into the sky. "All systems green, Captain. We're ready for launch!" said an unnamed operator. He gave the order to open a dimensional Gate to Prairie's world. I doubt something like this can go through a small portal like a doorway anyhow. The _Charity_ was drawn into the white void of the Gate. Within his Gate realm there were innumerable destinations. No doubt a result of his old occupation. The helmsman turned the ship to face a portal showing a base embedded in a white seaside cliff. We slowly drifted into it as we were transported to Prairie's world.

"We've been granted permission to dock from Guardian HQ, Captain" the operator said to Maguro. He gave the order to land the _Charity_ in the cramp dock. Actually it looks like two docks. The ships in this world must be significantly smaller than the _Charity_. Well, I'm just glad we fit. After a few minutes we were given permission to disembark. I looked over to the other dock where a badly damaged ship was under repair. It was a large pink ship with an angel for a figurehead. Of all the damage on the ship, the figurehead happens to remain in pristine condition.

"I didn't think you would keep your promise Captain Hamachi" said the girl who I assume must be Prairie. She looks to be about our age so I'm surprised she's a Commander. Although given DSO's command structure I really shouldn't be surprised. Though something gives me the idea that this girl is far older than she looks…

"Do not be quick to judge my appearance Commander Prairie. I'm not the advantageous swindler you make me out to be" he replied in his professional and mature voice. He gave his repair crew the order to head over to the Guardian Base airship. The excited group of gadgeteer geniuses all seemed to share the same excitement working on a ship they deemed to be a vintage model. Well given the kind of ship the _Charity_ is I'm not all that surprised.

"Sis…?" asked Prairie as Ciel and Rika disembarked. Prairie didn't even bother restraining herself as she ran up to her to give Ciel a warm hug. Wait a moment…A base embedded in a white seaside cliff? That's the Resistance Base from the Megaman Zero series. But I don't remember Ciel having a sister. And Prairie shares a striking resemblance to Alouette. If this is indeed the Resistance Base, then how far exactly are we in the future in relation to the Megaman Zero series? They seem to be called the Guardians now and even the Reploid designs seem different.

"I'm sorry I haven't been able to return to you for centuries. You must have been so lonely all those years, fighting on your own…" Ciel responded melancholically. Centuries eh? That would explain all the drastic changes.

Prairie shook her head and with a beaming smile said "I've had people near and dear to me to help me out! Actually I should introduce them to you…" There were two of them, twins it would seem. The both of them had long brown hair, with the young man wearing his loose and the young woman's in a ponytail. The man introduced himself as Vent and the woman as Aile. When Rika finally began introducing herself to everyone, Prairie looked at her in utter terror. Thankfully Ciel quickly cleared it up and said that she wasn't Omega, at least not entirely. Rika turned back to normal, now donning her outfit which looked like a palette swapped version of Ciel's. Omega appeared beside her in a more human-like appearance than his old self.

Prairie led all of us to an eating area where everyone got comfortable. I excused myself remembering that I promised to help with the repairs. I headed back to the dock where the Guardian Base was docked for repairs. Thankfully I've relearned my Synthesis ability now that I've learned how to control my newfound source of magic, whatever it is. Combined with all the technological knowledge I gained in Midchilda and Celestia, I should be able to help speed up the repairs. The repair crew was glad to see me helping out. It brought back memories of Maguro's last misadventure with Kanata and I. It was odd to be able to analyze things that Ange would normally do so for me. I guess my reliance on her masked skills I developed on my own. The operator who was on the bridge with us ran over to where the repair crew and I were. I wonder what's wrong. He looks like he's panicking.

"Captain Hamachi has raised our ship status to Condition Red! He's recalling all crew members back onto the _Charity_! I suggest you all get back on the ship ASAP!" he said to us as he rushed back onboard the _Charity_. I wonder what would make him raise the Condition to Red.

"Attention all Guardians! A Maverick outbreak has been reported near a Hunter's Camp. All combat personnel are to immediately board the _Principle of Charity_ and wait for further orders from Commanders Prairie and Ciel!" loudly announced a monotonous female voice over the base's PA system. As I got back on board I saw Maguro's boarding parties preparing for combat. Several battalions of Guardian combat forces were boarding the _Charity_ as well. Guess Rika and I will be getting a live fire exercise today. She returned with the others as we headed to the bridge.

The _Charity_ was heading for a camp where another pair of Megamen, Grey and Ashe, were coordinating the counterattacks along with Legion military forces. The _Charity_'s long range sensors were picking up the massive number of Maverick units trying to make their way to Legion. It seems the _Charity_ will be seeing some combat as well, as several Maverick airships accompanied the amassing force. I wonder whose leading the Mavericks…

Oh hell no…not her…"Attention Sliders! Surrender the World Object known as Biometal Model O as well as the ascended being Dr. Ciel and we will cease our attacks on Legion!" loudly ordered Quattro. The lack of glasses and the holographic keyboard around her can only mean she's in full blown bitch mode. And unfortunately this time she's got a formidable force to back her up.

"You want Model O, eh? Here's my counter offer: Go to hell, bitch!" retorted Rika as she gave Quattro the middle finger. Oh if Quattro wasn't pissed off before, she sure is now. Ciel cut the transmission to show her we wouldn't have any of her antics. Rika megamerged with Omega and headed to the deck. Today's forecast seems to be a 100% chance for a storm of explosive lasers and molten metal.

Our view from the bridge and the long range sensors showed that Rika meant business. Her Ragnarok Requiem attack was whittling down the massive Maverick force. All we could see was the numerous pink beams raining down with what seemed like small explosions where they impacted. I'd hate to be in that storm. I guess Serenity has improved her recruitment standards and actually brought in a fairly formidable opponent. How I wish I could take her down the same way Nanoha did.

Arriving at Hunter's Camp we met up with Grey and Ashe. Their red and purple armour showed signs of damage so I can only assume they're fighting as well. Following them we all moved onto the frontlines. Time to give Quattro and her army hell. That'll send a message to Serenity that we won't tolerate her terrorizing innocent civilians. And with a personality as twisted as hers, Quattro is just asking to have her ass handed to her. I turned my hand into its standard claw form. I changed the regular talons for energy blades and rerouted several magic conduits to congregate on my palm where I could use it like an arm cannon. On my other hand I had my Buster. I joined the other Megamen, jumping right into the middle of the enemy forces.

A nearby group of Mavericks had the misfortune of being torn to pieces by my claw while another group was mowed down by my Buster fire. The combined forces of the Guardians, Sliders, Hunters and Legion were slowly repelling the enemy forces for now. I should go after Quattro; 'Cut off the head and the body will die' after all. Grabbing the heads of one of the damaged Mavericks I altered it to become a bomb as I lobbed it ahead of me. I ran through the shower of slag and dismembered parts, working my way towards her. An airborne group was enroute to bomb out one of Maguro's entrenched units. Using the cannon feature on my arm I fired off several homing shots to take them out. I guess I'm not as powerless as I thought without Ange.

The others were doing a great job pushing back the Maverick forces. Ashe showed her skills as a top notch marksman, each of her shots scoring a headshot. Grey took a more aggressive approach, opting for the 'more dakka' method. Both used their homing shots to take out multiple targets with a single shot. Vent and Aile were using what I can only guess is Model X. Running between whatever available cover wasn't destroyed, they used three shot bursts to get rid of lesser Mavericks and large energy bullets for much tougher enemies. Maguro held the line with a luckily conjured chain gun using his Lottery Arms ability. Having an endless ammo belt, I doubt anything is getting past his line of fire. The _Charity_ was using its lower yield weapons like its machine guns and cannons to help Maguro hold the line while its missiles and beam cannons were targeted at heavier forces such as their airships. Thankfully Maguro has the presence of mind to protect his ship with an energy shield.

Damn, Quattro is being protected by four of those tougher Mavericks. What did I hear Prairie call them? Right they were called Pseudoroids. All four looked like they were based on feline predators. The lightning one was a cheetah, the fire one a lion, the ice one a tiger and the shadow one a jaguar. The full elemental square. This should be amusing…

"Blitz, Flare, Neige, Kage kill him!" she ordered as the four Pseudoroids started to run towards me. Blitz tried tackling me while its entire body surged with lethal amounts of electricity. Kage would disappear in its own shadow to launch sneak attacks. Flare fired a barrage of fireballs my way. And Neige tried to freeze me with sprays of some sort of liquid. Let me show you something called elemental weakness, Quattro. I goaded Blitz into trying to tackle me, only to run straight into Flare. Flare fired a barrage only to burn Neige as I moved out of the way. In an attempt to freeze me, Neige froze Blitz who was trying to tackle me. Kage who tried to launch a sneak attack, destroyed Blitz by breaking it into countless frozen shards. Firing an immolating fireball, Flare incinerated Neige into slag. In a final attempt to take me down Kage set itself to self-destruct. Too bad for it that it was right beside Flare. The resulting explosion took both of them out. Lovely. I didn't even have to expend any effort to take out her miniboss squad.

I ran up closer to Quattro. I had my arm cannon set to a beam setting. I had been charging it up during the whole battle with her Pseudoroids. The conduits weren't just fiercely glowing, sparks were arcing between and along them. Aiming it at her, she tried reasoning with me.

"See…I'm pulling back the Mavericks…There's no need to shoot me!" she said to me in a frightened voice. The 'oh crap' look on her face is simply priceless.

"Bitch, Nanoha says 'hi'" I told her as I prepared to fire my cannon. She simply turned around and ran away screaming. Oh good luck dodging this…The ensuing beam of red energy engulfed her as everything around it was vaporized. I was rather disappointed when I saw a dimensional doorway closing as the beam dissipated. Damn, I didn't get her. Guess I'll add her to my list of Serenity's associates who need to be taken out permanently. For now I should help the others finish off the remaining Mavericks…

When we finally finished mopping up the rest of the Mavericks I fell flat on my back in sheer exhaustion. Against a few dozen enemies I have plenty of energy and magic to keep me going. Against several armies worth even I can't keep that up. Maybe Haruhi, but definitely not me. I have limits now after all. Rika dropped down from the deck of the _Charity_ to help me find a better place to rest. The other Megamen were busy helping the wounded despite being amongst the most wounded. Their selflessness is amazing. Despite fighting literally at the frontlines, Maguro was unscathed. Not even a slight singe or smudge on his clothes. I guess being a badass just goes along with being a deity. I was somewhat annoyed at the fact that my clothes are damaged beyond repair and stained with blood. Guess running into the line of fire without body armour wasn't the best idea. I'll just have to synthesize myself a new one. I treated and bandaged my own wounds as I got up and started to give other wounded fighters some medical care. I can soundly thank Saki for those skills.

It took some time but we finished everything we needed to do there. Now I was on my way back to my dorm. Well not just I…Due to my recklessness, Rika and Ciel were now helping me get back. I was even more exhausted now, so much so that I can barely stand on my own two feet without falling over. With only a small distance left to cover, I dismissed them. I'm sure I can make it a few feet without falling over.

"Late! Penalty!" exclaimed Haruhi as I turned a corner. Late? For what? Oh great, I ended up falling over. At least even she clued in that I'm not in the best condition. With her godly strength she gently helped me up and brought me into my quarters. She seemed particularly worried about the blood soaked bandages covering a good portion of my body.

"Relax, Ciel fixed me up already. I'm just really tired" I told her as I started taking off the bandages and my torn clothes. Facepalm…why the hell am I stripping in front of her? Though this is Haruhi so I'm sure she could care less. I caught a glimpse of her turning away, not so much in embarrassment but rather to give me some privacy. A pile of clothes appeared out of nowhere onto my bed. I was about to synthesize myself some new clothes, but it would seem she beat me to the punch. Thanks Haruhi.

"Get some rest. You don't have to go jogging with me tomorrow morning" she told me as she started towards the door. That was uncharacteristic of Haruhi. In fact ever since she's been split up from Kyon she's mellowed out considerably. Considering that back on her world I equated her with Chaos, her new behaviour is somewhat startling. Perhaps I was mistaken with my analysis? Never mind that for now. My only important priority is sleeping right now.


	47. Chapter 46

Chapter 46: Evolving Darkness

"Pick up the pace Alan! You're setting a bad example for the Brigade's newest recruit!" scolded Haruhi. We were standing in front of the standings board. It doesn't take a whole lot of imagination to figure out where I am on that list. In fact Konata was higher than me. Maybe she was right. I really should pick up the pace. Sure school back in Haruhi's (and mine for that matter) was boring but here it's actually interesting. Which makes it that much more annoying for me. Maybe I should get Rika to train me…

"Ah, come here to check your standings Haruhi?" asked Riku as he suddenly appeared behind me. Seriously he's getting pretty good at just randomly appearing out of nowhere. Brings back memories of him as the White Reaper.

"Nah, I already know where I am" she replied. Arrogant bit- "I was checking up to see how Alan and Konata were doing." Come to think of it she seems to be on really good terms with him…too good. Makes me wonder why she's acting like that…

"Morning Haruhi-sama! Hey, I'm doing pretty well. Alan-kun should try to catch up. He's falling behind on the combat standings" noted Konata. Well at least I can say I'm doing well with the scenario simulations and academics…For once…But they're right; whole lot of good brains will do me if I don't have the brawn to back it up.

Going to his own class, Riku headed off saying goodbye to Haruhi. Those two are the least compatible people I know. One is organized and composed. The other is just plain crazy. It's like trying to get Order and Chaos to go out on a date. It just doesn't end well. And I'm pretty sure if there was anything shady going on between them, Kyon and Alice would be pretty pissed. I'll just chalk that up to recurring coincidence.

We took our usual window seats as Mr. Hamachi began…whatever it is we're doing today. He said that today we would be focusing on our combat training. Guess that makes sense. I'm pretty low on the standings but there are others who are even lower. Makes for a bad reputation for Mr. Hamachi I suppose. Not like Haruhi, Konata, Aisha or Alice have anything to worry about. They're the top four respectively for our year.

"I have to apologize you guys. I put so much emphasis on making sure we kept up with academia and your ability to react to various situations that I forgot to make sure you kept up with your training. Today's and the next few days' only goal is to improve your combat skills. Since your combat standings are determined by duels with other students we'll focus on one on one fights today. So let's head down to the simulation room and I'll randomly pair you up with another of your peers to spar against" he explained to us before leading us to the simulation rooms. He loaded the combat simulator when we were all ready.

When we could see again we were in a completely white room. I thought we were supposed to be sparring? As if to answer my question Mr. Hamachi's voice began to echo throughout the room. He explained that partners would be assigned randomly. He explained that this would teach us how to deal with different combat scenarios. Meh, works for me. All of us watched as pictures of everyone in the class began to randomly pair up with another. Soon enough all of us had a partner. Before sending us off Mr. Hamachi told us that we would switch partners periodically. He added that we could do anything from trying out new skills or simply going all out. With all the boring stuff out of the way the room changed again and we got started.

"It is an honour to spar with you, Kurayami-san" said Aisha as she bowed. She then unsheathed her pair of katanas as she turned into her Demon form. After a few times, I've gotten used to seeing her like that. I didn't have anything besides my own limbs to fight with. Since the Object Saya gave to me was situational, I had to give it back. I don't mind much since I could never use it that well anyway. Although I wish I could get my own Object.

Aisha went on the offensive. To be honest I still don't know what her katanas do. Well I know that they are capable of cutting through things most katanas can't realistically. That and they always cut through everything leaving only a paper thin slash mark. Unfortunately now I'm at the receiving end of it. Her incredible speed makes it impossible to dodge. So instead I'm just setting up barriers to block her attacks. At least they can't cut through my barriers. But I still don't have a good enough grasp on my slider ability to use it offensively. Aisha stopped attacking after a while.

"Kurayami-san, you haven't even tried to fight back. Is something the matter?" she asked.

"This is a bit embarrassing but other than hand to hand fighting skills, I don't have any way to attack. Sure I'm fine if it's just street fighting but against armed opponents? Yeah it's practically useless" I replied giving an embarrassed chuckle.

"Are you skilled with any particular weapon?" she asked again.

"With a katana. It's nothing proper but it works" I replied, "It's mostly just some improvised use that I learned during my days as a thug." Even if I did have one, I doubt I could even put up much of a fight against Aisha. Unlike me, she has actual skill and technique. She sheathed her katanas. Are we stopping early?

"I think perhaps the better course of action here is to find a way to turn your slider ability into an offensive format. Unless you're fighting in tandem with another person you run the risk of being overpowered pretty quickly. And I believe I have a solution…" she told me. She asked me how much control I have over the shape of my barrier. I told her I could make any sha- Wow; I can be pretty stupid sometimes…It doesn't take much imagination to figure out what shape I made my barrier into. The very property of the barrier to nullify any attack has now become the ability to block or slash anything. Looks like being able to erase things from existence works both ways.

While I'm at it I should try this too…In the same way I made my Void katana, I made Void replicas of my throwing knives back in the Real World. I threw a few of them around, satisfied that they were actually better than their Real World equivalents. It didn't take me long to figure out the catch of my now seemingly useful ability. Caught up in the excitement, my katana disappeared. A few moments later the knives I made disappeared as well. Aww they have a time limit…that sucks…

"I don't think so Kurayami-san. Since you must control their shape it is entirely possible that losing your focus, even by the slightest bit, will cause them to destabilize and disappear. If you would like I could teach you techniques in order to improve your focus" she offered to me. May as well. We spent the remainder of our session together learning how to achieve focus even in the heat of combat. Wow, this is the most peaceful it's been in a while…Soon enough our session ended and I got a new partner.

"So you're my opponent in this session? Even if you don't hold any ill intentions toward me, don't expect me to hold back!" Yorrick said to me. And now he's running towards me. This should be the last session so may as well get it out of the way…

His first punch landed on my barrier with a resounding thud. I moved back and converted my barrier into a katana. I tried to slash him but he blocked it with his fist. Damn it, I forgot I can't damage Objects with my ability. As his other fist came in for a hook I made a knife in my other hand to block it. How is this guy so strong? Sure I may be blocking him but he's actually able to push me back. Wait this guy has an esper ability. What was it again? Oh yeah, physical augmentation. Crap, physical augmentation. Even if I do have a weapon what's the point if the other guy is a hell of a lot stronger?

He eventually managed to push me back, knocking me off guard. Maybe I should've asked Aisha for some sword training after all. He may not be as fast as Aisha but he still moves a lot faster than me. I still remember how momentum works: speed times force. Unfortunately, compared to me, he has both in freaking spades. I was literally flying back after his follow-up punch. To Haruhi or Konata this guy might be a pushover, but to me he's a serious threat. I really am the weakest link out of the present Brigade members. I staggered as I got back on my feet. He came in for a wicked uppercut. Guess which way I went. He caught me with a lightning fast jab sending me flying across from him. Guh…this guy is handing me my ass and I haven't even managed to land a blow on him yet.

"Damn it, you punch like a girl…" I told him as I landed on my back.

"How dare you insult me when you're the one who's losing?" he replied. What the hell, I'm complimenting you. Have you ever been punched by a woman before? Believe me, they hit _freaking_ hard. Especially if you see them naked when they don't want you to…

Alright, what the hell can I do to get myself out of this. Riku said that if I want to stand a chance of winning I have to take stock of the situation. This guy is obviously physically stronger, faster, and probably tougher too. I've gotten a lot better at using my barrier so that I don't suffer from recoil. But if I use my barrier, I can't use my weapons. So I need to find a way to make my barrier part of my weapon? How the hell am I supposed to do that? I can change my barrier's shape. So far I've only made simple shapes like domes or blade weapons. Wait, I wonder if I can constantly manipulate its shape. If that's the case then I've got a brilliant idea. But it may not end so well…

As he came in for another punch I swatted him back, sending him flying back for once. I can change my barrier's shape so fast that its equivalent to velocity. And since it's nigh indestructible against anything he's got, it's also strong. I covered every inch of my body with Void, making armour out of it. I went on the attack and tried to punch him. Our fists collided and I could see a pained look on his face. I don't suffer from recoil, but he does. We continued our little slugfest until eventually he was in too much pain to continue. He finally surrendered as he fell flat on his back.

"I have to admit, that's pretty clever. Using your defence as offense at the same time is quite effective. I'm fairly certain that under that, you haven't even taken any injury from me at all" he noted as he gave a weak but hearty laugh. He managed to sit up in time to see me fall back.

"Yeah, you're right; you didn't hurt me at all under my Void armour. I hurt myself though" I responded giving an equally weak but hearty laugh. The sudden vector changes put such a painful strain on my body. I'm surprised I don't have any torn muscles or dislocated bones. I'll have to find a way to make that form better. It's far too awesome to be put aside as a trump card technique.

As he got back on his feet he asked me "Surely that's not all the fight you have? I'm up for another round if you're able to."

"The drastic and sudden vector changes are way too much for my body to handle. Right now I'm just happy I didn't suffer any serious physical harm. But all of my muscles are unbelievably sore. If this weren't a simulation I'm pretty sure I'd be brought to the infirmary" I answered. Guh, I can't even get up even with my armour off. I'm sure there must be a better way to use it.

"Are you up for a conversation then?" he asked of me as he sat back down.

"As long as I can keep lying down" I answered back still lying on, well, my back.

"Alright then answer me this. How can you put up with such an insufferable woman like Ms. Suzumiya? She's not just downright insane but she abuses her own subordinates for her amusement. Even I don't treat my subordinates that badly on my worst days" he inquired. Huh, that's a good question…

"Haruhi is Haruhi and nothing else but Haruhi" I replied with what I figured was the best answer.

"Don't give me that altruism crap. Let me help you with my opinions then. There are only two reasons I can think of: 1) You're madly in love with her and you'd be willing to travel right through all seven circles of hell simply to appease her. Or 2) You've gone so far off the deep end that you don't realize she's treating you like you're less than crap" he suggested.

"Alright fine, I'll give you a better answer. I don't like your suggestions anyway. Haruhi reminds me of someone I loved deeply back in my world. Hell, actually now that I remember, the girl I loved was reincarnated in Haruhi. But it's not as if I love her like that. She just gives a different angle on a viewpoint of life that I cherish. She's insane, but she's affably insane. And anyway under all that crazy shit she does, she has a really soft side. I'd feel bad if I treated her like crap just because she treats me like that. She's already suffered a trauma that would've driven her straight into the depths of depression. I'd much rather she be happy and insane than alone and despairing" I said in a grand exposition. Why the hell am I even telling him this? For all I know he might be planning on screwing over Haruhi.

"I have to admit, you make a solid case for the woman. I still don't like her though…For obvious reasons. But I will keep your wise words in mind next time she's bothering me. Nevertheless I suggest teaching her self-control" he replied in return. Since when have people called me wise?

"Oh she _knows_ self-control. She just exercises it for certain people like her boyfriend or Riku" I told him.

"May God have mercy on the brave soul of Kyon…" he lamented.

"Oh, he _likes_ the crazy shit that she does. God help us if he goes along with one of her schemes" I said in response. He really isn't a bad guy after all. Though it makes me wonder why Riku seems to hate him. He must've done something to him. If that's the case I wonder what Yorrick did exactly…

"I hope I'm not bothering you guys" I said to the three of them as they entered my room. If there's one thing I like about this dorm room I've been provided, it's the fact it has a kitchen. It's nice to have everyone all together again. Ever since they began school here I haven't been able to talk to them much. The only one I've been able to spend much time with is Haruhi. Somehow I seem to be able to find time in my schedule to take her around the town. There's no denying the fact that I've become good friends with her over the last few months, but never once have I spent time alone with her until just recently. God knows Kyon would have been incredibly pissed if he believed I was taking Haruhi away from him.

"Not at all. The food here isn't all that bad, but I think I speak for everyone when I say that passing up an opportunity like this is blasphemy" Alan replied jokingly.

"Hey now, I don't want you worshipping my cooking" I said back. Everyone looks like they're enjoying my cooking. Learning to be a Slider is no easy task so treating them like this is the least I can do to reward them for all the effort they're putting in.

"Hey, Riku, why do you hate Yorrick so much?" asked Alan. Who's Yorrick?

"That guy who's always pissing you off" replied Haruhi. Wait, did you just read my mind? Hmm, guess not.

"Oh, the fan club leader. Him and his buddies kept harassing Solipse. Since North beating the stuffing out of them didn't work, I tried my hand at it. Not sure what I did, but it worked like a charm. Neither him nor his buddies have been bothering Solipse or anyone else since" I said to answer Alan's question.

"I think you can stop terrorizing him now. He seems like he learned his lesson. That and he's not such a bad guy" suggested Alan.

"Alright then…But only because I trust your judgement" I responded.

They didn't stay too long after dessert. I can't blame them since it's getting pretty late and there are still classes tomorrow. Alan and Konata went ahead of Haruhi since they both probably want as much sleep as they can get at this point. I went with Haruhi to bid her goodnight as well as to close the door when they were gone. Haruhi was just about to exit when she turned around. After she did so everything blacked out. For a second I thought I passed out. When I opened my eyes, I saw it was a hell of a lot worse than that.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I yelled to Haruhi as I pushed her away from me instinctively.

"I should be asking you that! I pass out for a second and next thing I know you're kissing me!"

"You passed out too?"

"You did too…?"

By this point the two of us were more confused than anything else. The only thing either of us could do was ask ourselves, "What in the hell just happened…?"


	48. Chapter 47

Chapter 47: A Life Left Behind

Hanami let out a loud yawn to tell me that she was way too tired to be jogging at five in the morning. Solipse and Thales on the other hand were alert and curious as to why I would bother them so early in the morning.

"Listen, I'm sorry for bothering you all so early. I have something I want to ask you three…" I said to them as we began to run. Konata was still shocked by what we had seen last night. I honestly thought the world would end then and there. If my sheer presence alone can cause Haruhi emotional turmoil, then an unexpected kiss from a friend would be enough to cause quite a bit of chaos. Thankfully the world is still in one piece. "Has Riku been acting weird the last month?" I finally asked them.

"Yes actually…quite strange…He would never dare go to the first years' female dorms. Now he seems to go there whenever he has time" answered Solipse.

"There's a rumour circulating that implies your Brigade leader seems to have taken a romantic interest in one of the second years. I didn't think anything of it till I heard someone say 'Angel of Slaughter'. If you're curious, that's the title everyone calls Riku by" Thales further added.

Solipse obviously wasn't clueless about what I was getting to. "Are you suggesting that Riku and Haruhi are cheating on Alice and Kyon? It's obvious these rumours are just blowing a simple misunderstanding out of proportion!" Solipse said in their defence.

"I was hoping that it was just that, rumours. Last night though, Konata finally proved the rumours" I said back.

"I…saw…Haruhi-sama…kissing…him…" Konata slowly said in little bits. Man, she hasn't been able to overcome the shock yet…

"Ha! As if they would really do something like that. It's kinda pathetic to see you two having so little faith in your friends. And you, Alan, should be ashamed of yourself for even believing those rumours!" scolded Hanami.

"This isn't some baseless argument! It wasn't just Konata who saw, but me too" I told the three of them. Thales and Hanami were about to retaliate with their own argument. Solipse, however, beat them to it.

"Alright, everybody just shut up for a couple seconds! Have you even asked the two of them yet?" she asked the two of us calmly.

"Well…no, not yet. Would they even have told us the truth?" I responded. I was kinda hoping Konata would back me up but, with her like this, I doubt she's going to be of much help.

"Damn it, for once I wish you two would have slept in!" Haruhi yelled out to Konata and I as she arrived with Riku.

"Believe us, it's not what it looked like" added a distressed Riku. Right now I'm hoping that's the case. Wherever Itsuki may be, I'm sure he must have screamed like a girl when he realized that Haruhi kissed Riku.

"Care to explain what they saw then? I have a feeling this is just like that time on the roof" requested Solipse. Uh…

"_NO_, she doesn't mean it like that! I was just talking to her, I swear! Anyhow, what she meant was that perhaps I, and I guess that includes Haruhi now too, seem to have more than one past life. I think maybe you should explain the rest, Solipse" Riku said to us.

"When a person is reincarnated, they tend to retain residual memories of their past lives. If said reincarnated person lives for an extremely long time or is continuously reincarnated, the residual memories tend to have a more profound effect on said person. As Riku has already said, this is the most likely cause of their odd behaviour. This does beg the question of what relationship their past selves had with each other. It's quite obvious that their relationship is more intimate than most…" By the time Solipse finished her explanation, Haruhi and Riku were blushing shades of red that I didn't think were possible.

"So does unwittingly kissing your past significant other count as a 'profound effect'?" I sarcastically asked Solipse. I regretted saying it sarcastically mere seconds later as Haruhi and Riku were now glaring at me. Let's just say that eyes of gold burning with anger and hellish pupils work well for glaring considering I was about ready to crap my pants. I quickly apologized before Solipse answered my question.

"Yes. Though their past selves would have had to live for an abnormally long time or be reincarnated every time they died. As much as I would love to find out more, it would seem that their past selves' memories are tied more to their emotions than their memories themselves. I could also research it, but I have no clue where to start" answered Solipse.

"Guh, guess I lose this debate huh? Sorry for blowing the whole thing out of proportion…" I apologized. For the first time in a while, I actually screwed up solving a mystery. I guess it could've been worse…

"I appreciate you showing concern but, next time, try not to jump to conclusions. Given that this is the realm of fiction, there are so many strange happenings you have to take into account before you declare something," concluded Riku. "Now that we've solved this problem, we should all catch up on some rest before classes start" he said to us before walking back to his dorm. Everybody else followed suit not too long after that.

My class continued our one on one sparring matches from yesterday. Once we all arrived, Mr. Hamachi paired us off before starting the combat simulator. Once the blinding light had dissipated, I found myself standing across my sparring partner, Alice. She took out her cellphone from her skirt pocket. Wait, isn't that her Object?

"Haseo, let's go!" she cried out. 'Haseo'? Odd, I don't remember her Object having a name…Hey, her weapon looks different and she even has body armour. Wait, an Object that has a name and equips its user with a weapon and armour…That's kinda like Ange. _Oh crap it's just like Ange!_ Alice proceeded to show the new improvements to her Object as her twin pistol-dagger things rained some kind of energy projectile all over my Void barrier. When the shooting stopped, I turned my barrier into a katana to attack her. She blocked my weapon with the dagger component of her pistols. When she levelled her 'gundaggers' to my head, I could only mentally facepalm. By some miracle, I managed to equip my Void armour in time which protected me against her pistols' fully automatic gunfire.

"Like the upgrades? Thanks to Ciel and Riku, we figured out that my Object can mimic other electronic devices. I decided to go for the Intelligent Device path and made Haseo. .Hack was always one of my favourite old school Earth RPGs. I figured a little shout out in the way of making my Barrier Jacket and weapon just like Haseo's Xth form was in order" she explained as she unleashed another burst of gunfire onto my armour. Wish I knew more about this Haseo character; too bad my gaming knowledge doesn't cover RPGs.

"It's definitely better than what you had before" was the only response I could think of. She just gave me a mischievous grin before resuming her attempts to blast through my Void armour. Doing my best to ignore the pain, I charged at her. My fist connected with the blades on her gundaggers. She tried to counter by firing off her guns to no effect. I grabbed her arm and threw her off to the side. While she was still in mid air, I dashed just ahead of her and tried to slam her back down. Instead she managed to plant her feet back onto solid ground before leaping right over me; all this while accurately shooting. She said she was from the Real World as well, but how in the hell is she such a good shot? I wonder if she grew up in a more hostile part of the world…

"You said you're from the Real World too. Mind telling me where?" I asked her. She 'holstered' her pistols; or in other words, they disappeared in a flash of light. I doubt I'll ever understand how advance technology works, let alone magitech.

"I doubt you'd recognize the city. In fact, I think it'd be better to ask you _when_ you're from" she answered. When? Is she a time traveller too?

"The last time I was in the Real World was midsummer during 2012. I don't remember the exact date since I was dealing with some…personal issues…" I told her.

"I know all about the whole incident. Even sixteen years later, that incident is still considered to be the stuff of nightmares. I mean, how would you react if you were the first responder and you found the freshly dismembered remains of over twenty people? My mom showed me old footage of it. They never showed the bodies, but you could tell it was a mess since the streets were literally running with blood. All I know is that the prime suspect for the case, the White Reaper, was never found. The victims were primarily from some kind of gang, but there were a couple of innocent bystanders that were caught up in it too."

"Wait, there were two uninvolved victims?" I asked her.

"Yeah. The first one was your girlfriend, Saki Babel. The other victim is probably someone you don't know. He was Germain Enterprises business mogul's son, Friedrich Sankt Germain. His dad put in a hell of a lot of effort to keep it from the press, but they eventually figured out. Wait, are you saying you know Friedrich?"

"Yeah, he was a friend of mine. I knew he had fallen into a coma, but I never knew that he died."

"I never said he did. A lot of people believe that his father took him out of the hospital and moved him into private care after rumours started circulating that he was the infamous White Reaper."

"So he disappeared? If that's the case, who the hell is Riku? If Friedrich is only missing, then how come Riku has all his memories? He even claims to have all his memories and so far there's no reason to doubt him."

"There are people here in Celestia who are Half-Spirits. They're souls who are stuck between the border of life and death. From the few of them that I have spoken to, the reason most of them are like that is because they're in a coma. It's possible that Riku is a Half-Spirit."

"I'll go ask him. As for your infamous White Reaper, I'm sure you've heard of the rumours amongst Shinigami trainees. There are even some DSO officials who claim that he ran a black op mission for Kelowna along with two other people. From what I could get from Kelowna, he's actually a really nice guy. Still, if he could beat Kelowna in a fight, he can probably slaughter twenty thugs like it's nothing. Before you ask, it was Serenity who killed my girlfriend, not Friedrich."

"You could've helped solve that case and clear up Friedrich's name. No offense, but the only reason that people are so afraid of Friedrich back in the Real World is that they think he was the one who killed Saki. It doesn't help any that you, the sole living witness, disappeared at the same time he did thus eliminating any chance of finding out. Unless you want to let out a few skeletons-"

"Are you nuts? I'll admit I'm a skilled thief. I'm not, however, a freaking killing machine! For that matter, neither was Friedrich. During the time we worked together in that gang, he never killed anyone; sure he injured people, but he never killed them. It was only when Saki was murdered did he kill. Saki was like a sister to Friedrich. Having to watch her get shot execution style was what made him snap. If Serenity never shot Saki, all those people wouldn't have died."

"You know, you sliding into the Fictional World was the worst thing you could have done. Although people interested in strange happenings love you. After all, how do you explain how someone can disappear from a plane mid-flight? Of course I know the answer to that is unintentional dimensional sliding. But even with the ability to slide, you can't just travel through the Fourth Wall…"

"The Fourth Wall?"

"It's a term derived from Greek theatre that states there is an invisible wall separating the audience and the fictional work being portrayed. It wasn't until recently in my time that we discovered there really was such a thing as the Fourth Wall. In fact, my DTD was supposed to be just an aesthetic replica of the prototype my parents built; you know, for a science fair project. I didn't realize that some of my aesthetic additions to it actually made it work. I'm sure my parents would be proud of me for completing their experiments if I wasn't stuck on the wrong side of the Wall…"

"So sixteen years from my time, theoretical extra-dimensional physics is actually a reputable science and not just for budding fan fiction writers? Also, you actually understand that stuff?"

"Obviously yeah; I'm not stupid. Given that my parents do a lot of their research at home, it's no surprise that I learned it. And think of the implications, Alan! To be able to meet your favourite fictional characters in person; who hasn't dreamt of that?"

"That is truly amazing…Who cares about important scientific advances we could make if we get to meet people like O-Haruhi-sama, right?" I said to her sarcastically.

"You can be a real ass sometimes, you know that? Thanks for killing my fun, killjoy" she angrily replied. Well if I was faced with massive food and energy shortages, wouldn't I want access to things like synthetic foods derived from sunflowers and Sakuradite? Although having someone whose power can alter reality may not be so bad either…

"Yeah, sorry about that; I was just trying to be practical about the whole thing. Although, we could easily solve faster than light travel. All we'd need to do is put Haruhi on a spaceship, tell her Einstein's theory of relativity is bullshit, and off we go."

She went on to laugh at my apology before replying, "Sure, apology accepted. Next time though, try to be a bit more original with your jokes. I might live sixteen years ahead of you, but even I know that was one of Kyon's lines from the _Haruhi Suzumiya_ light novel series."


	49. Chapter 48

Chapter 48: Misaki City

A month has almost passed since we left Haruhi's world. Those of us in the Brigade that weren't split up have been polishing our skills in preparation for our next excursion to look for another World Object. I've spent the last couple weeks perfecting my Void armour's latest iteration, if it can still be called armour. Whereas before I used the Void to coat my body with an impregnable layer of body armour, I now use a far more effective method. Since the greatest weakness in the previous version was my own body, I learned how to temporarily replace it with the Void.

"When you explain it like that, you make it seem like you purged yourself from existence" Haruhi suddenly said to me as we were walking along. Hey, how did you know what I was thinking about?

"Telepathy. Riku says that if I had an outlet for my frustration, I won't subconsciously use my power in catastrophic ways."

"Well, can't you use a less intrusive ability?"

"Alice is right; you really are a killjoy. Is telekinesis fine then?"

"I guess…? Just what exactly have you used your power to learn…?"

"Plenty of different things. For example, I can find people by concentrating on their names. I can tell you right now that Riku is in the washroom."

"I really didn't need to know that…" I replied deadpan. A few seconds later Haruhi's cellphone rang.

"Oh, hey Riku…How'd you know I used divination? Fine, I won't use that one either unless I'm requested to do so…To be fair, Alan did ask me to…" Haruhi said in reply to all of Riku's questions. I wonder if he's been practicing with his slider ability…That's the only way he could've known what Haruhi has been doing.

"Of course I've been practicing," said a white haired man about my age as he suddenly appeared beside me, "Now would either of you like some tea?" He produced a silver tray with a teapot and cups on it. Haruhi wasn't fazed at all by this guy's sudden appearance. She even took one of the cups and he poured her some tea. Is this guy Riku?

"Obviously, Alan; who else would it be?" replied Haruhi. Hey! I thought you said you wouldn't read people's minds without being requested!

"Ah, I should clarify shouldn't I? It is indeed me, Riku. After Haruhi called me, I used Soul Synch with Sakuya Izayoi to gain the ability to manipulate the flow of time. As you can see, I've learned how to synchronize with people who aren't in my immediate vicinity. Quite the improvement, eh?"

"Would it kill you to tell me that then? You seriously freaked me out when you just teleported in…" I told him. There's sneaking up on someone and then there's just suddenly appearing out of nowhere…

"Actually, I stopped time within the academy grounds and walked here. From your perspective it would certainly seem like I teleported when in truth you were simply unable to see me walk in. I could have also flown in, but there were no nearby open windows…"

"Oh yeah, most of the people in Gensokyo have the ability to fly around. I remember Hanami mentioning it to me; it had something to do about the joy of aerial bombardment…Oh before I forget, Konata told me to tell you that her mom told her to tell you to go to her office. I think it had something to do with the World Objects we're searching for."

"Might I suggest being more straight to the point next time? You could've simply told me that she requested me to come to her office. Before I depart I would just like to apologize for my sudden change in speech. Soul Synch has the unusual side-effect of me taking on some of the characteristics of the person I am synched with. If you would excuse me, I have some business to attend to. Do enjoy this lovely day" Riku said to us before he stopped time and walked away…I think.

"That tea was pretty good…Maybe I should go find this Sakuya woman and make her my personal maid!" exclaimed Haruhi.

"I'm pretty sure that Remilia would not agree with that…"

* * *

"You needed me?" I asked Kanata as I entered her office. Usually there's no one but her in her office although it seems today is an exception. Seated in front of Kanata were Alice Toki and Konata.

"We made some headway with the clues on that list that Suzumiya-san discovered. I'll let Konata-chan take over from here…" she replied. Even now, I still can't believe that Haruhi could miss something that obvious. No use whining about it now.

"I solved the riddle of ESPer Flame's location. The clue was '_Mirror worlds of Red and Blue. Defeat the Hunter with blazing eyes and burning hair to claim what you seek_'. It's in Misaki City being guarded by Shana, the Burning-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter. And the mirror worlds refer to Earth and the Crimson Realm" explained Konata. To think I could've gotten the ESPer Flame back when Shana and I accidently ended up fighting each other. They better not be thinking of sending me to get it considering the animosity between Shana and I…

"Apprentice Furude and Initiate Toki, your mission will be to retrieve the ESPer Flame by defeating the Burning-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter, Shana. I believe that we can retrieve this World Object without having to resort to extreme measures. Should you be unable to defeat her, I ask that you stay in Misaki City and protect her from Serenity and her organization" ordered Kanata.

"I don't think I'd be the best person to send on this mission…Let's just say that Shana and I aren't exactly on the best terms…" I nervously told Kanata.

"This is why she's sending me with you. Before I came to Celestia I travelled through Misaki City and befriended her. In fact, I think we can use the animosity between you to our advantage…" Alice responded. I couldn't help but smirk and cringe at the same time. It made plenty of sense. Simply by showing up, I can instigate a fight between us two while Alice ensures that Shana won't try and off me. Given how our last fight went though, beating her is easier said than done…

I opened a dimensional doorway for the both of us. I've always appreciated how Kanata waves us off rather than the standard salute. Although, since she is a mother, I guess it makes sense. Stepping through, we found ourselves on the pedestrian walkway on a suspension bridge. All around us the world was tinted with red which meant that we had just landed inside a Fuzetsu. Come to think of it, it was like this the last time I came here. At least it'll be easy to find Shana; all we have to do is follow the fiery explosions.

"Shana looks like she's in trouble…Come on, let's go help her out!" ordered Alice. She used her Object's Intelligent Device setting to equip her Barrier Jacket and weapon. I stopped her before she could run off. I Soul Synched with Sakuya again to make use of her time manipulation.

"This method is far more effective. You might want to hold on tightly at this point" I told her.

"Quit wasting time and let's go already!" ordered an impatient Alice. I grabbed her hand at which point she blushed. Believe me, if I don't hold onto you, you won't be going anywhere anytime soon…Once I had her hand in mine, I used the effects of the Luna Dial to freeze time in Misaki City.

"On the contrary, it is quite hard to waste time when it is no longer flowing. Shall we get going then? I can only keep this up for so long" I said to her. Making sure I had a firm grip on her hand as to make sure I would not accidently drop her, we took off into the sky. Never have I been so glad that pretty much everybody can fly in Gensokyo. Without a sense of urgency, flying through the night sky is quite relaxing although I could do with less of this red tint. When we reached the site where Shana's flames were frozen, we found a Denizen frozen in combat. As soon as Alice let go of my hand, she too was frozen in time. It didn't last long as the effects of the Luna Dial wore off and time flowed once more.

Alice somehow managed to keep her sights trained on the Denizen as she plummeted down to earth. I saw that Shana and Yuji were genuinely surprised by Alice's entry. The Denizen, while not unharmed, was far from defeated and shifted its attention onto Alice. I swiftly swooped down onto the Denizen and slashed at it with a pair of red handled knives. My attack earned me an insult from the laughing Denizen.

"You think that a little nick like that even hurts?" it asked me.

"I agree being cut only hair deep would not be the most painful injury. Perhaps you would like me to cut your eyes out instead? I can guarantee that will hurt much more" I retorted. The Denizen immediately stopped laughing and immediately glared at me.

"Know your place, lowly human!" it screamed at me as it dove down to where I was standing. Using the Luna Dial, I stopped time just as the Denizen was about to attack me. I moved out of the way and surrounded the Denizen with dozens of knives aimed at it. When time resumed again the Denizen was in for a brutal surprise as dozens of knives pierced it all over its body.

"See, I told you being stabbed in the eye hurt. All those who would oppose the Scarlet Devil Mansion's residents, even a servant such as I, will be struck down without mercy" I said to the Denizen. Whoops, I'm letting the Synch rate get too high again. I'm sure Sakuya would not appreciate being suddenly, if only temporarily, transported from Gensokyo…

"Less talking, more ass kicking!" yelled out Alice as she fired twin streams of gunfire at the currently incapacitated Denizen. Yuji followed with three slashes with his sword before Shana finished the Denizen off with an exploding fireball. With the Denizen eliminated, Shana took down the Fuzetsu. It was only then that Alice and I realized that we had arrived in the middle of the night.

"It's nice you came back and visited us, Alice, but couldn't you have come at a better time?" asked Shana. I wonder what Alice did to be on such good terms with her…

"Well, it was around noon when Riku and I left so we didn't exactly think it would be midnight."

"Furude-san? As in Riku Furude-san? This guy does kinda look like him…I don't remember him chucking knives at people though…" noted Shana after she glanced at me. Ah, right, I forgot to cancel my Synch with Sakuya. As soon as I did, my hair and eyes returned back to normal. At least my Synch rate didn't exceed 100%...otherwise I would have ended up in Sakuya's body along with transporting her out of Gensokyo…"What do you know, it really is you."

"Do you have some free time tomorrow, Shana? Maybe we could just hang out together again" suggested Alice. I see we're not just going to challenge Shana outright. Maybe I can use this as a chance to prepare myself for our fight. I get the idea that Alice won't be fighting her considering her Object's Intelligent Device setting doesn't have flight as one of its programs. Though I certainly would like to see them duel anyway. I know Alice used firearms for her weapons, but I'm not sure what kind of attacks she can do with them.

"We don't have school tomorrow so why not. Is he coming along too?" asked Shana suspiciously. A year has passed by and you're _still_ suspicious of me? What the hell do you want me to do or say to earn your trust?

"Yeah, after all Riku and I are best buds…right?" Alice asked me in a playful tone of voice. You really should drop the playfulness because God knows that somebody here will misconstrue it.

"Of course we are. I'd actually be pretty surprised if by this point we weren't friends given that we spend some time together. And I think this would be a good chance to get to know Shana better since she's still wary of me" I answered.

"Oh, so you two are going out…I guess if Alice-chan can trust you, I can too…maybe…" Shana agreed hesitantly. Damn it, I knew this was going to happen! You know, given that you come from the Reality side of the Fourth Wall, I cannot honestly believe you didn't know that would be the conclusion she would come to. Although this is an excellent opportunity to finally earn Shana's trust, so I may as well play along.

"I guess there's no hiding things from you is there, Shana? If you bring along Yuji we can make it a double date!" I excitedly suggested. I quickly, but gently, grabbed Alice's hand at which point she blushed a little. Shana blushed too at the idea of spending some time with Yuji.

"S-sure…we-we'll meet you at Y-yuji's house tomorrow morning…" responded a shocked Shana. After we said our goodbyes, Shana and Yuji left. Once they were out of sight, Alice just glared at me.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she angrily asked me.

"Isn't this part of your plan? I thought that when you started using that playful tone, I should start playing along" I replied. Oh no…please don't tell me-

"_Are you freaking stupid?_ I was teasing you for God's sakes! Thanks to you, Shana thinks you're my boyfriend!" I was already facepalming and banging my head against a nearby wall before she even finished.

When I regained my composure, I told her, "Well it's too late to do anything about it now. It actually works in our favour since I can use this to build some level of trust with Shana. And anyway, I'm sure a cute girl like you has been on plenty of dates."

"…a-actually…this is my first one…No one has ever asked me out before…"

"Well…that was a gross miscalculation on my part…"


	50. Chapter 49

Chapter 49: It's a Small World After All

"Even if you do have a girlfriend already I expect this date to be top notch!" ordered Alice. Last night, after our meeting with Shana and Yuji, the two of us stayed at a hotel as per Kanata's instructions to stay in this world. The evening was made rather awkward by the fact there was only one room available. Thankfully there were two beds in the room. It still didn't stop Alice from kicking me out during and after taking her shower. I had ended up using Synthesis to make us some breakfast as well as a change of clothes. Now we were walking towards Yuji's house to start the double date that I had accidently roped us into.

Shana had beaten all of us there despite the fact Yuji lives here. As we were still waiting for Yuji, Alice and Shana started up a conversation. I took out my cellphone and discreetly took a picture of the adorable looking Shana. If I can just get another picture with Yuji in it, I'm sure Konata will love to add this to her collection. Maybe I'll get lucky again and she'll pay for them. Yuji finally showed up minutes later.

"You're late, Yuji!" scolded Shana.

"It's not even nine yet so how can I be late?" he replied. It pissed Shana off since his reply earned him a glare. Shana may be adorably cute but, damn, she can really stare someone down. I wouldn't say he was late but, given that we're right in front of his house and within view from his room, couldn't he at least have had the courtesy to hurry up?

"It's still pretty early and I haven't eaten breakfast yet, so why don't we go eat out somewhere? While we're at it we can plan out where we'll go today" suggested Yuji as he led the way with Shana walking beside him. I did just eat breakfast but I suppose it would be fine if I ate again…Although if the look Alice just gave is any indication, she probably won't each much. This mission isn't exactly going so well…though I suppose it could be worse.

We made our way to an eatery that was thankfully already open. Shana was obviously not that hungry either as she settled for a warm drink and some melon-pan. Just as I thought, Alice simply had a couple slices of French toast. Come to think of it, I wonder of what ethnic origin she is. Her family name is obviously Japanese, but she doesn't have any physical features typically present on someone of Asian origin. I suppose I'll find out if she ever decides to tell me. In the end, I decided to simply have a cup of coffee. I would quickly regret doing so. What is it with anime and bad coffee?

"You guys don't seem all that hungry…Not much of an appetite?" asked Yuji.

"Well, Riku and I have already eaten breakfast before we came to your house. Maybe if you didn't wake up late we wouldn't be here in the first place. So does the coffee taste like what I think it tastes like?" asked Alice with a slightly teasing tone. I replied with a simple nod before downing the rest of the mug's contents in a single gulp. I will never understand why I can consume such hot meals and beverages without burning myself.

"I've been meaning to ask, Shana, but why do you seem so wary around Riku?" asked Alice as she finished her last slice of French toast.

"Bad timing I guess. He showed up right after I had finished off a Denizen. It didn't really help that he had black fiery angel wings, had his swords drawn, and a strange Power of Existence. Even now it's still weird being around him since whenever I feel his Power of Existence, I feel like I'm talking to two halves of two different people. It's just weird and it's what made me think that he was some kind of Denizen in the first place…" replied Shana. I thought as much…

"If it's any consolation, the next place I visited after coming here to Misaki City had its villagers run away from me screaming, 'DEMON! DEMON!'…" I replied before sighing. My reply put a smirk on Shana's face. When I first saw my reflection I already knew that some people would react much like Shana or Hinamizawa's villagers.

"How about we head to an amusement park? That'd be fun, right?" suggested Yuji. I suppose that could be fun. Certainly a different kind of excitement than being shot at by hordes of Mavericks…

"It'd be my first time going to one. My hometown is a bit small so there isn't anything like an amusement park there. As long as you're with me, Riku, I'm sure I'll have a fun time~!" she said to me sweetly. This is so freaking awkward…And acting all sweet like that really doesn't suit her. Personally, I find she's more of the self-confident (or maybe self-centered…) type.

"That goes without saying, Alice. Anyhow, I can use a little break from school; the first round of tests was pretty brutal, even for me. What better way to enjoy my break than spending time together with you" I replied in a suave tone. Great, now I'm being all cheesy too. Although if Alice (my actual girlfriend) were here, I actually wouldn't mind taking some time out of my schedule to spend some time together. Hopefully I can explain that situation with Haruhi without her being angry with me for long. I wonder if all this sappy acting is making Shana and Yuji a bit uncomfortable.

"We'll have to take a bus there since it's a bit out of town. We were all up pretty late last night so we can use it to get some rest" Yuji said. Once everyone, mainly Yuji, had finished eating, I paid for our food and we left. The walk to the bus stop was pretty uneventful and didn't take long. Surprisingly, Shana and Yuji really are treating this like a date. Well…as close as one can get to a date with the two of them. When the bus finally came, we boarded it. Shana and Yuji ended up sitting a few rows in front of us due to the number of people on the bus. Once we were on our way, Alice decided to start up a conversation since we weren't all too sure if Shana and Yuji were awake in the first place.

"I always wanted to ask…are you the White Reaper?"

"In the Real World, I was; at least before Serenity put me in a coma when she shot me in the head. Freaking miracle I didn't die then. As for here in the Fictional World, I'm not. My Half-Spirit is the one that everyone keeps calling the White Reaper. I met him once so far and I have to say he's quite nice. It does make sense considering he's a living embodiment of my personality back in the Real World. What about you? It's a bit sad but I don't know much about you or where you came from."

"Alan may have already told you that I'm from the Real World too, but sixteen years in the future from your point of view."

"People seriously consider the Fictional World to be real in your time? Better yet, how'd technology develop so fast?"

"Your time only had rocket propelled spacecraft. If you can believe it, spacecraft in my time are capable of faster than light travel by way of wormholes. In fact, I don't even live on Earth. When I was still a baby, the government gave my family the chance to live on one of our country's offworld colonies. That's where I was living until my replica DTD sent, and stranded, me here in the Fictional World."

"That's…quite the jump. Sure as hell makes up for the lack of scientific progress during the Dark Ages. How old are you anyway?"

"Sixteen. I wouldn't be surprised if you question how I was able to build a functioning DTD…"

"Actually, if you think about it, it makes a lot of sense; if you make certain assumptions that is. If your colony hasn't been developed too much for civilian life then it would be kinda hard to get schooling. That only leaves the only possible situation where your parents are the one educating you. Given that your government gave your family such a chance means that they're probably world class scientists. Although it begs the question of what kind of science they dealt with…"

"Physics…the extra-dimensional kind. The DTD was their attempt at trying to prove the existence of something beyond what they called the 'Fourth Wall'. They were able to prove that there was _something_ after they were able to pick up signals from unstable portal experiments, but they weren't able to physically cross it. All I did was apply my own deductions as to how the DTD should've been built…"

"The Fourth Wall Project succeeded?"

"Wait, how do you know? It should be considered top secret during your time! The only person who would know during your time would have been my mom's secret benefactor…"

"My father was her benefactor. He wanted a monopoly on all the technology discovered or created as a result. That means your mother is Amy, a university student who I look up to like an older sister figure. Small world, huh?"

"That's…actually kinda disturbing to know…My mom was pregnant with me during university. All I knew about my biological father was that he was someone my mom was close with during university. My mom might've been pretty, but she scared away most guys with her dedication to the Fourth Wall Project. Since you're the only one she was close to at the time…"

"Whoa, HELL NO! I know for a fact that I am not your father! She was like a sister to me! I may be a lolicon, but I'll have you know that I'm not into that whole incest thing!"

"Glad to hear it. That bastard left my mom as soon as he figured out she was pregnant."

"So your father that was living with you is your stepdad?"

"Yeah. I'm really glad my mom met him. Unlike that bastard who got her pregnant, my stepdad has been really supportive and takes good care of my mom and me. Speaking of which, your dad is going to be even richer when I finally get back to the Real World with my functioning DTD."

"I'm pretty envious of your family…The only person who truly cared about me was my mom and she died when I was still really young. My dad…I don't know why, but ever since mom was murdered he's been hating me with a passion. Although in hindsight I'm thankful for all the hardships he put me through, I've always wondered why he hates me so much. All I've ever shown him all my life is my devotion and love for him as his son…I know he's capable of love if how he treated my little sister while she was still alive is anything to go by…"

"Sorry…Maybe I shouldn't have prodded too much into your past…"

"Not at all. When my family was still together, we were happy as can be. The only other time I've been happy during that life was years later when I befriended Saki, Alan and Luci. Although, death and misfortune has a habit of stalking me…As far as I'm concerned, Death is my yandere girlfriend. Every time I come to love and care the people around me, it just swiftly and mercilessly strikes."

"Again, I'm sorry…I know I've opened some old wounds of yours. We've arrived so I'll make sure to show you a fun time! Consider it my thanks for your family's help in making sure my family's life is comfortable! You may not want to mention the whole 'Death is my yandere girlfriend' thing around Kelowna though. She's really proud that her older sister's hard work paid off and that she's the current Shinigami…"

"I'll hold you to your offer! Now come on. I think Shana and Yuji are still asleep. If we can get some photos of them cutely snuggling up against each other, I'm sure we can sell them to Konata for some money!"

"I could use some new clothes…Ah, why not; Konata and I are friends anyway, so I may as well help her out. By the way, how do you know they're cutely snuggling together?"

"Otaku intuition, my dear Alice…otaku intuition…"


	51. Chapter 50

Chapter 50: Adorable High Explosive Legion

I once again found myself having to use the Object that Luci left me to get the money for mine and Alice's ticket to get into the amusement park. Alice, having never been to an amusement park before, was both awed and amused by the sights and sounds. Quite a mood whiplash from our conversation on the bus; then again, amusement parks were created for the express purpose of fun and excitement.

"I wanna go ride a roller coaster!" demanded Alice in a manner akin to a young child. I could only chuckle at how amusing the sight of it was. After all, in terms of age, she's only a year younger than me.

"Perhaps we should try one that's a bit more geared towards first timers? It is your first roller coaster after all. Better to find out on an easy one that it's not your thing rather than on a death-defying one, right?" I suggested. Continuing what I assumed to be her acting like a child, she pouted and reluctantly agreed. After spending a few minutes looking for a suitable candidate, I found one that matched what I had intended. It had what I deemed to be tolerable twists, turns and drops that should be a perfect for Alice to try out. She looked a bit disappointed at first, but I persuaded her into trying it.

"Before I get too carried away, you weren't lying when you said this was your first time to an amusement park right?" I affirmed once more. She replied with a somewhat annoyed 'Yes'. She quickly regained her enthusiasm as it was our turn on the coaster. Much like a stereotypical roller coaster, it started with a slow ascent before plunging down the first drop. From what I can see and hear, Alice seems to be enjoying it without any complaint. It feels so reminiscent of flying around with Blaze Slide…Nevertheless; I didn't let my feelings of melancholic nostalgia show as I joined her in screaming with enjoyment.

"Good call, Riku. Wanna go on other roller coasters, Alice?" asked Alice. Taking Shana's hand in her own, Alice's reply was making a mad ash towards the closest roller coaster. As they did so, I noticed that Yuji wasn't with us. Thankfully, he showed up a few seconds later before I began to think that there might be a Denizen afoot. Unlike the girls however, he wasn't exactly looking well.

"Not much of a coaster fan, are you?" I asked the nauseated Yuji.

"…not really…Ugh, I think I'm going to hurl…" he noted before stumbling off after Shana. Better suck it up, Buttercup; from the looks of things, I may have created a coaster maniac. Hopefully he can keep his stomach's contents in his stomach…At least until lunch, of course! I suppose that's a good way to work up an appetite…in a sick and twisted sort of way, that is.

Thus we passed the couple hours before lunch by riding each and every roller coaster that we could; and not just once, but several times. Alice's excitement was barely containable and Shana looks like she thoroughly enjoyed herself too. Yuji, on the other hand, was not looking so well. In the end, he decided to accompany Shana on each and every roller coaster. Alas, now he's completely nauseated and can't even look at food without making a mad dash for the nearest washroom or garbage can. A small price to pay to win Shana's heart, Yuji!

"If it's any consolation, I'll buy you food when your stomach settles- and he's gone again. Apparently even the mere mention of sustenance is enough to make him sick. He'll be fine…eventually…" I said as Yuji ran into a nearby washroom. I'm sure Shana is probably mentally facepalming at Yuji's antics.

"Some people just can't keep it down, huh?" commented Alice. After adding her piece, she continued to eat the hamburger I bought her. I ate mine as well while Shana eagerly waited for Yuji to come back. I noticed that she had already gone to the trouble of buying him breath mints. I hope he's not feeling too adventurous because I highly doubt he's going to get far today…

"You two really enjoyed yourselves this morning. Got anything planned for the afternoon?" I asked the two of them.

"Maybe we can head to the haunted house and check that out" offered Shana.

"I wouldn't mind going to the Midway and playing some games. You better get me a cute stuffed animal as a gift~!" Alice said to me. I have faith in my accuracy; so long as the targets aren't rigged, I should be able to get her one. Yuji returned during our discussion and rediscovered his appetite. What do you know? I was right about his nausea after all!

"Let's go to the haunted house first. Then we can spend the rest of the afternoon playing games at the Midway. I'll do anything you guys want as long as it doesn't involve anymore G-forces…And how can you guys even handle all that? You must have ridden at least twenty times all together!" inquired Yuji.

"High speed flight" Shana and I answered in unison.

"I just like it" casually responded Alice. Yuji simply looked in disbelief at her answer and thought no further about it. Maybe Ciel and I should add flight capability to her Object's Intelligent Device setting…

Once lunch was done, we took some time to rest before heading to the haunted house. The four of us went in thinking that it wouldn't scare us much given our past experience in combat. We were dead wrong…In varying degrees that is. Shana and I were somewhat unnerved, Alice was frightened enough to have grabbed my hand midway through, and Yuji was scared, for lack of a better term, 'shitless'. The theme made me feel like I was in some disturbing hybrid of Alice Margatroid's home during Halloween (if Gensokyo's inhabitants celebrate Halloween that is) and Kaede's room from Kampfer. Who knew dolls whose entrails were coming out of their body could be frightening?

"That was definitely far scarier than I thought it would be. I'm not sure about you two, but I'm sure Yuji agrees with me. No need for a reply, my friend. You glomping Shana out of fear is more than enough proof. Aren't you two glad you could spend so much time with each other?" I asked the two of them. Both of them blushed and Shana pushed Yuji off her in embarrassment. Alice agreed with my opinion and proceeded to giggle at the other blushing duo.

"Come on, Yuji! You're totally failing to entertain Shana! Since the Midway is up next, make sure you win a cute prize for her~!" cheered on Alice as she ran to the Midway. I could've stayed and listened to Shana give Yuji a lecture on manning up, but I wanted to keep Alice within my line of sight. I'm not sure how much Serenity knows of the World Object here, but she definitely knows who works for the DSO. If I were her, if I couldn't find out where the ESPer Flame was, I'd go with the next best option: capture and interrogate someone who might. This mission may be getting more fun, but it doesn't change the fact that leaving Celestia puts us straight in Serenity's and the Demons' line of fire.

I found Alice at a game that involved shooting targets. Given her dead accurate accuracy, I don't blame her. From the looks of it, she managed to get a large stuffed bear and was waiting for me to pay for her game. After I did so, we walked to another game booth when our fun day was cut short. The sky was almost instantaneously tinted red and everyone around us had been frozen in place. The two of us wasted no time getting prepped for a fight with Alice using Haseo and I dual-wielding my trusted Buster Shots. We heard several explosions in the distance and were about to head towards it since that was where Yuji and Shana likely were. Instead, I heard Alice scream and when I turned around her stuffed animal had latched onto her. I was about to blow its cute little head off when it suddenly started talking.

"Welcome to my little Midway of Terror, DSO kiddies~! I have a name, but all you need to know is my title, Adorable High Explosive Legion. As you bright, chipper fellows may have already figured out, I'm one of Lady Babel's allies. Before you get any bright ideas, all of the stuffed toys and plushies here in the Midway, along with countless adorable reinforcements, are charged with highly explosive, unstable magic. Shoot the one keeping your girlfriend hostage, and she'll blow up into much scarlet confetti. Wouldn't want that now, would we~?" a disturbingly cute child's voice asked.

"Oh, is that so~? Well, it's been fun, Alice, but I guess all fun times must come to an end~! Au revoir, mon amour~!" I said as I shot the teddy bear that was latched onto her. Of course, I'm not that stupid to actually endanger her. Thanks to a painful, but effective, Soul Synch combo between Sakuya and Yuakri, I was able to stop time just as the bullet hit and pushed Alice into a gap that led right behind me. When time resumed, I had to deal with Alice's angry screaming before I could continue.

"What the hell? You could've killed me! It's a freaking miracle I'm alive right now! Speaking of which, how am I alive anyway?"

"If you ever visit Gensokyo, thank Yukari Yakumo and Sakuya Izayoi. For the time being we should focus on destroying these stuffed animals" Unfortunately, I was unable to maintain the Synch and I was forced to shoot my way out along with Alice. Hopefully Ciel will be able to fix our hearing because all I can hear right now is a lot of ringing I shouldn't be hearing. When we reached an open area, we were reunited with Shana and Yuji.

"Aww, that one over there is just _so_ cute~! I totally want that one when it's all over~!" gushed Alice. Did you forget _that they blow up?_

"Any one of them suit your fancy, Shana? I promise to get it for you when we're done" asked Yuji. Oh God, not you too…

Mine and Shana's reply: "Don't just stand there gawking!_ KILL THEM!_" By this point Shana and I were more concerned about being completely surrounded by walking suicide bombers.

"_Ring around the kiddies~, A legion of explosives~, BOOM~! BOOM~! BOOM~! BOOM~! They're all blown away~!_" sang the creepy little girl slider over and over again. My God, I'll never look at Alice Maragtroid, Shanghai or Hourai the same way ever again…Even though a single explosion caused surrounding stuffed toys to detonate, an endless amount of replacements seemed to replace them. On top of that, they were exponentially increasing in numbers. Damn it, where's that little girl? To avoid being surrounded we made our way towards other places in the park. Sadly, everywhere we ran to, more joined in on the chase. Some of them were even throwing their comrades at us like they were mortar rounds or live grenades.

"Anyone got any other ideas besides keep shooting until they're all gone? I don't think that plan is going so well!" I yelled at the other three.

"Let's split up and look for the one controlling them! Maybe if we take her out, they'll stop coming!" loudly answered Alice.

"Why are you two yelling?" asked Shana.

"Because we can barely hear anything!" Alice and I replied in unison. We split into two groups of two when we reached a fork in the path. Shana and Yuji headed back towards the Midway to see if the enemy was there and I went towards the haunted house. For a place full of dolls, I haven't seen even one of them attack us yet. My theory was that she has them standing guard wherever she was. The most likely place she could be would be the haunted house since that would be the easiest place to ambush us with her explosive legion.

"Oh, Hell no! I'm not going in there!" complained Alice as I confirmed my theory. Unfortunately, the sentry dolls weren't just suicide bombers. They were armed with all sorts of explosive weaponry like grenade launchers and rpgs; all of which were fired simultaneously at us. I pushed Alice down as I hit the dirt. The various explosive projectiles flew mere centimetres above our heads and took out their own allies. The two of us wasted no time in eliminating the sentries while they reloaded. We were in luck as the sentry dolls' explosions created a chain reaction inside the haunted house, levelling it to the ground. We were able to spot the little girl running away from the wreckage completely unharmed and gave chase.

"Aww, you cornered me…But are you really going to kill me? I may be an enemy, but I'm still a little girl…" pleaded the enemy slider with puppy dog eyes.

"You think I'm stupid? You're just another explosive doll! The ball joints were kinda of a dead giveaway by the way!" I yelled out at her. That and I'm pissed you screwed up my hearing. The doll's face contorted into one of an insane child's smile as it tried to take us with her. She was much more resilient than the other stuffed toys, taking a pair of explosive rounds from my Buster Shots to detonate. While Alice was safely out of the blast radius watching my back, I was hit by the shockwave. I landed right in front of one of the explosive stuffed toys and had to quickly throw it away before it detonated.

"We should head back to the Midway! Maybe she was there after all! We know how she looks like now too!" suggested Alice as we ran around the explosive legion that was following us. It took us longer than expected to meet up with Shana and Yuji thanks to all the detours Alice and I had to make.

"She's in the arcade! You two head inside, we'll take care of things out here!" yelled out Shana. While their fireballs were slow to fire, the explosion that accompanied them caused any nearby stuffed toys to detonate. They may be able to hold them off for now, but they won't last forever.

"Took you two long enough~. I was getting lonely waiting~…" said the enemy slider; the real one this time. She was hardly the cute or innocent looking little girl that her sentient doll looked like. Sure, the two of them looked exactly like each other, but there were some glaring differences. This poor girl's face was half covered in burns and at least two of her limbs were replaced with prosthetics that resembled a doll's ball jointed limbs. All of this was merely what were visible; God knows what other disfiguring injuries she may have…

"What happened to you…?" I asked her.

"What? You find me ugly? Abominable? I'm a child born into a world that reeks with human sin! Why do you think I love stuffed toys and dolls so much? They were created without human sin, of course! They'll never try to torture me or blow me up with landmines~! I love all of my little loyal soldiers with all my heart~! Each and every one of them that are sacrificed rids existence of human sin! Isn't it delightful?"

"If you surrender, we can give you proper medical attention in Celestia. Please don't make us hurt you more than you already are…" I pleaded with her. Just how many child soldiers is Serenity manipulating into doing her work for her…?

Laughing, she replied, "You think I want to look as beautiful as I used to? Go ahead; stare at my twisted, disfigured body! I love how I look! Why? For you're staring at the monument of all your sins!" Several dolls came out of hiding to show to us that we were completely surrounded. "Go ahead; it's either my checkmate or yours."

I levelled my Buster Shot at her head. "Guess I'll call checkmate then. Sleep in peace for the rest of eternity, suffering child." No matter how prepared the girl was to die, she closed her eyes as I pulled the trigger…or so she thought. Instead, I opened a gap and dropped a bucket on her head. She was too busy rubbing the resulting bump on her head to see that I had gapped in behind her to knock her out. As soon as I did, the legions of explosive toys disappeared. Guess she needed to keep constant control of them.

"Oh my God, I thought you were going to seriously shoot her…" said Alice as she breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm not so heartless as to kill a child in cold blood, much less a little girl!" I said to Alice.

"Is it because you're a lolicon~?" teased Alice. Seriously, not funny…

"I like girls my age, thank you very much. I'll also have you know that while fine, there is a line between being a lolicon and a pedophile! And anyway…this girl is injured far beyond anything I've ever suffered physically, mentally and emotionally. I hope Kanata can find a way to help heal her mental and emotional trauma. 'Mothers know best' after all, right?"

"Yeah, you're right, I'm sorry. That joke was taking it a bit too far and was probably a little inappropriate. I really do hope that Kanata can help this girl…"


	52. Chapter 51

Chapter 51: Knives of Time, Sword of Flame

"You two really are sliders, huh?" noted Shana as a detachment of DSO medics attended to the enemy slider. Aside from her obvious injuries, which the medics weren't equipped to deal with, the only other injury that needed tending to was the bump on her head. Whether she wants to admit it or not, I'm sure she'll take a bump on the head over her brains being splattered all over the wall behind her. After they secured her with anti-magic restraints, they brought her back to Celestia.

"What are those guys going to do with her?" asked a concerned Yuji.

"At worst, she'll be held in a juvenile detention facility with anti-magic restraints as long as it's needed. What's probably going to happen is she'll be taken in by either Commander Izumi or the Divine North. They'll probably help rehabilitate her to living in society again and if she's cooperative they'll probably enroll her in Fantasia Slider Academy. Enemy sliders apparently are really cooperative after they learn that Serenity has duped them into doing her dirty work for her. It beats sending them back to Serenity to be executed; and I would know because I talk from experience…"

"That's a lot of 'probably'…" commented Shana.

"While there are basic protocols to follow, each case is handled differently according to how the enemy reacts. I believe that either Kanata or North is best for this job since they tend to be quite motherly having daughters of their own. If you're really concerned for her wellbeing, I can arrange a trip to Celestia so you can check on her progress."

"I think we can take your word for it. Know that if you hurt her in any way at all…" threatened Shana.

"I'll personally adopt her myself if I have to. I may be of a lower rank, but my position as an Apprentice can give me a lot more political power than one might imagine."

"Which begs the question: Were you here just to take down another enemy slider? Or are you here on other business?" inquired Shana.

"Other business," I replied, "How it plays out is all up to you."

"Our original mission was to defeat you in combat, preferably without killing you, in order to obtain a powerful World Object known as the ESPer Flame. Since this World Object is vital in a personal mission that my brigade leader ordered me to assist her with, I was chosen to partake in this mission. Alice came in order to act as a mediator due to our strained relationship; But let's be honest, it doesn't matter how many different people I Soul Synch with since your chances of victory are over 90%, at least."

"If you knew that there was little chance you could win, why bother coming at all?" asked Yuji.

"As for the combat plan, I was willing to bet on my less than 10% chance of victory if it means I can reunite the lost members of the SOS Brigade. I am partly to blame for the complete destruction of their world. The other plan we were presented with was to put you into protective custody, preferably in Celestia. What you choose to do is up to you. Just know that while a slider's presence can alter a world's plot, removing a person classified as a 'Main Character' will cause drastic changes and may even lead to the destruction of your world."

"You're talking like we're just some characters in an anime…" noted Yuji

"You're right. You're characters in a story called _Shakugan no Shana_. The world you live in right now is but one of the countless worlds that make up the Fictional World. That doesn't, however, make you any less real than someone like Riku and I who are from the Real World. That's why we're willing to take a risk and fight you; it's the plan with the least amount of impact on your world…" answered Alice.

"Can't we just surrender the ESPer Flame? To be honest, I don't even think I'm using it…" offered Shana.

"Unfortunately, the prerequisite to allow it to be taken requires us to beat you in a fight. I don't even think we have to kill you, just beat you in fair combat."

"I don't really have much of a choice, do I? Ok then…I, Shana the Burning-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter, challenge…Um, who am I challenging again…?" she asked embarrassedly.

"I, Riku Furude the Angel of Slaughter (God, I need to change my title…), accept your challenge. As you are the one who is challenging, I will allow you to choose our method of duelling."

"How about we use these? They're hitpoint counters I use in live-fire exercises. As long as you have them equipped, you wouldn't be able to kill the person even if you tried to nuke them. Although, Riku, I ask you not Soul Synch with either Alan or Serenity. Alan and I proved this thing doesn't work with Void users…" offered Alice. She handed one over to Shana and the other to me. They were discreet little patches that attached themselves onto our skin. Once both of us had equipped it, a holographic screen appeared behind Alice and Yuji.

"Ouch…I think it goes without saying that Shana is obviously going to agree with this. By the way, where did you get those hitpoint counters?" I asked Alice.

"I just used my Object to turn into a pair of them. If you don't mind, Yuji and I are going to move to a safe distance to watch. They may make your attacks non-lethal, but your attacks are still capable of damaging property. Also stick to one Soul Synch. You're going to be in a crapload of trouble if you used multiple Synchs and lost them while you're in midflight. I assume you're going to Synch with that Sakuya woman again?" inquired Alice.

"Yeah. I'll refrain from using the Luna Dial too. But just so you know, Shana, Sakuya has the inherent ability to manipulate time regardless; even if it's just for a couple seconds. I take it you have no qualms about me using that particular Synch partner?" I asked Shana.

"None at all. In fact, if you lose, it'll just make you look worse!" jokingly replied Shana. Actually, she's right. Time manipulation will help equal out the disparity between our levels of skill. For the sake of the SOS Brigade, I can't lose! Shana's blazing angel wings erupted from her back to show that she was ready for a fight. Once my Synch with Sakuya was established, my hair and eye color changed. I also noticed that I had a pair of sheathed combat knives attached to my belt. How the hell did I miss that? The hitpoint counters gave us wireless communications with Alice.

"Level 90 Flame Haze, Shana vs. Level 65 [UNKNOWN], Riku. Begin!" announced Alice.

Shana wasted no time in charging at me with her flaming katana. I quickly stopped time and surrounded her with dozens of knives before running off behind her. Unlike the Denizen, she was able to block them all by spinning in place and using her wings as a barrier. I flipped back and threw several knives at her to put some distance between us. She made us of her wings once again to block the knives and continued her charge. I leapt over her charge and threw a few knives at her under the influence of time acceleration. She wasn't able to block one of them as I managed to knick her with it.

"Shana: 7000 hp minus 100 hp. Shana is currently at 6900 hp and Riku is at full health with 5000 hp." announced Alice. Dear God, I hope she doesn't announce how much hp we lost every time we lose some…

As Shana lunged at me with her katana, I quickly stopped time to move in behind her. When time resumed, Shana instead stabbed through an Ace of Spades card while I moved in for a slash. She used her wings to launch herself backwards away from my knife's magically extended reach. I tried to catch her off-guard with another set of accelerated knives, but she showcased her superior sword techniques by deflecting all of them with a single blow. Leaving myself wide open, she charged to take advantage of the opening I accidently gave her.

"Conjuring 'Eternal Meek'!" I called out. I found myself with a large, temporary supply of knives. I began throwing them at random trajectories in order to stop her. Shana was forced to stop as her wings alone weren't enough to block the deluge of accelerated projectiles. I once again got a taste of her superior sword techniques as she deflected the knives that got past her wing barrier. While slow, she was definitely gaining ground against me. As my spellcard ran out, Shana moved in for a transverse slash, scoring her first hit.

"Riku: 5000 hp minus 700 hp. Shana is at 6900 hp while Riku is at 4300 hp." Damn, that was just a regular counter and she did that much damage?

This time I went on the offensive. I used a feint in the way of knives that were frozen in time. Shana immediately went into a defensive stance to react but was surprised as no knives bounced off her wings. Throwing an illusionary knife into the air, I moved in behind her using time manipulation. I then threw a half dozen knives in a tight formation towards her. My three pronged attack worked beautifully with Sense of Thrown Edge, Misdirection and Magic Star Sword all landing a blow.

"Shana: 6900 hp minus 1800 hp. Shana is at 5100 hp while Riku is at 4300 hp." Individually, Sakuya's knives are pretty weak. However, multiple small hits add up to score a fair bit of damage.

While still on a roll, I threw out a few bouncing knives. Their unpredictable ricochet left Shana on the evasive. Noticing that they only bounce at a certain height, Shana flew up above it. I moved in under her and jumped up. I deployed a trio of knives into an orbit around me to try another hit. In a gutsy evasive manoeuvre, Shana dove down in-between the orbiting knives. Completely vulnerable, I didn't have a chance to counter Shana's multiple charges. Before I knew it, I was plummeting towards the earth after being hit by one of her fireballs.

"Riku: 4300 hp minus 2000 hp. Riku is at 2300 hp and Shana is at 5100. You better not lose, Riku!" complained Alice. I'd like to see you come down here and try. Shana's biggest weakness is dealing with feints. If I can just take advantage of Sakuya's illusions, I might be able to turn this fight around. I took off into the air and Shana chased me. I made use of Time Paradox to call in another me. The other me countered by stopping time to place knives all around Shana. While the other me was setting up Shana for a counter, I threw another set of time delayed, accelerated knives. When Shana was free to move around again, she blocked all of my other me's knives. She couldn't block the ones I threw since they were all aimed at her defensive stance's biggest weak point: right above her. I raced down to the ground and prepared another spellcard to deal some heavier damage on her.

"Scarred Soul 'Soul Sculpture'!" I called out. Drawing my two combat knives, I dealt blow after blow on the helpless Shana. I'm sure she was surprised at just how far my knives' slash could reach. If I wasn't wearing this hitpoint counter, I'm sure it would have torn Shana to pieces. Likewise, her attacks would have just torn me apart and incinerate me as well.

"Shana: 5100 hp minus 2000-"

"I'm not done yet! Buriallusion 'Phantasmic Killer'!" Dozens of knives flew out and homed in on the recovering Shana. All I saw as they came in for the hits were red trails. Shana wasn't dead, but I'm pretty sure I've won this already…

"Shana: 5100 hp minus 5100 hp. The winner is Riku Furude!" announced Alice.

"Great tactic. Your attacks may be fast, but they're incredibly easy to block. If you knock around your target, you can buy yourself those precious few seconds to land all your blows. Pretty lucky final attack there; if you hadn't finished me off, I would have been the one to win" complimented Shana.

"I was worried you'd start using your fireballs. I'm not completely sure about this, but I get the feeling that your fireballs could easily deflect my knives. Either way, it was a good fight. You were right by the way; had my last attack failed, you would've won. Buriallusion 'Phantasmic Killer' was my final spellcard. If that had failed, I would have been left trying to whittle down the rest of your hp. Given your following attack involved fireballs, I definitely wouldn't have lasted long…" As soon as Alice took back her hitpoint counters, a fireball came out from Shana.

"That's two World Objects down so far…I just want to say again that it was an honour to duel against you."

"Hmm, maybe I was wrong about you…But I still want to know something…Are you really Alice's boyfriend?" asked a curious Shana.

"I'm not. I misread her teasing as some kind of signal to play along…It was kinda awkward having to play that role since I already have my own girlfriend. I didn't want to deceive you or anything; I just messed up…"

"Now that your mission is done, are you going to leave?"

"I'd like to get the ESPer Flame back to Celestia before Serenity finds out. The weekend should've started back in Celestia so I'm sure Alice can stick around for a little longer. Since she's a friend of yours, I doubt she'd mind. If you still have anymore questions about sliders or the DSO, just ask Alice. And today was fun. Maybe next time there won't be any interruptions?" ESPer Flame in hand, I bid them farewell as I walked through my dimensional doorway.

* * *

"Initiate Toki, do you copy, over?" asked Kanata.

"This is Initiate Toki. What's up, Commander Izumi?"

"How's your mission going so far? From the sounds of it, you might've been a bit sidetracked" Kanata heard the nervous chuckle of Alice at her comment. It didn't help Alice any that the sounds of the amusement park were loud enough to be audible for Kanata.

"About the amusement park…You see, Riku thought my teasing was-"

"Don't worry, Alice-chan, enjoy yourself. It's your exam break and it doesn't seem like Serenity's group knows where the ESPer Flame is."

"Well, it's a mission success. We managed to retrieve the ESPer Flame without harming Shana, all thanks to me!" Kanata did her best to suppress a giggle. As always, Alice forgot to give credit to her teammates. Alice may be a capable leader, but she's not the best fighter. Kanata already knew that it was most likely Riku that fought Shana. She couldn't help but feel proud that her Apprentice was doing well. "Actually, I was wondering why you're asking for an update. Riku should've returned already with the ESPer Flame."

"Is that so? Odd, Riku hasn't showed up yet…" Kanata began to get concerned. "Did you see his destination?"

"Yeah; he got lucky and his doorway went straight to your office. He's not there, is he…?" inquired a concerned Alice.

"No, he isn't. Please don't burden yourself with searching for him. I'll handle the search. If he is still in that world, please call me if you find him."

"Will do. Just call me if you need more help. Initiate Toki, out."

"I can tell you now that Miss Babel had nothing to do with it. I was just on a routine patrol mission in that world" said the enemy slider who was sitting across from Kanata. The enemy slider, a little girl, accepted the cup of tea from Kanata with her prosthetic arm which resembled that of a doll's. Despite the seriousness of the unfolding situation, Kanata couldn't help but giggle at the young slider in front of her. Though it was being covered by an icepack, Kanata could tell she had quite an obvious bump on her head.

"What? If it's the bump, you can blame that slider guy with the long black hair. He dropped a bucket on my head!"

"Glad to see he pulled his punches. I can guarantee you that it would not have ended well for you if he didn't. In case you were wondering what that transmission was about, the one who defeated you has disappeared mid-transit."

"I might still only be a child, but even I know it's impossible to suddenly vanish mid-transit."

"Hmm, this is Riku so I'm sure he'll find a way out of his situation. What concerns me is that you're right; there's no possible way that this could happen. It doesn't help matters that he has the ESPer Flame in his possession."

"If you don't mind, I'll stay here in Celestia at least until he returns. I wanna give him a piece of my mind for hitting a little girl!" The enemy slider took a large sip of tea. Unfortunately for her, it was still quite hot. Though Kanata giggled at the antics of the enemy slider, her mind was already hard at work trying to deduce how her Apprentice could have suddenly vanished for no reason.

* * *

Author's Notes: Hope you enjoyed the Shakugan no Shana chapters. Sorry for the delay in posting. I've recently started working to help pay off my college tuition and my schedule leaves me with only a couple hours a day to work on my fanfics. Worry not if you've been reading this fanfic as I'm actually a lot further than what I have posted here; just proofreading it to make sure any obvious grammar and spelling errors are resolved and that I'm still closely adhering to my original plot while making a few alterations here and there. Angel Beats! will be up in a couple days since I only have a few plot kinks to work out.


	53. Chapter 52

Chapter 52: In the World Hereafter

"Well…that's never happened before…" I said to myself. When I came to, I found myself lying down on the ground. Once I was back on my feet, I checked the surrounding area. From the looks of it, I'm in some kind of boarding school. Why else would it have dormitories? Off in the distance, I could hear the faint sound of a rock concert. That's one hell of an evening entertainment at school. Though I've never visited this place before, it seems unusually familiar to me…

"Oh, hello there. Are you lost? From the looks of your clothes, it's your first time here" asked a kind teacher.

"Yes, I am actually. New settings tend to leave me kinda disoriented, if you know what I mean."

"I wouldn't worry about it. It may take some time, but you'll get used to it since you're going to be here for the next three years. If you'd like to follow me, I have to deal with some disciplinary issues." The teacher pointed in the direction of a building where the sounds were coming from.

"I knew a rock concert on school property was too good to be true."

"Since it'll take us some time to head over there, I'd like you to think about an offer I'll make you. Our student disciplinary committee is running low on members since most of them graduated. I'd like to extend an invitation to you to join. If you haven't already guessed, I'm kinda desperate…" When we entered the building where the rock concert was taking place, I was surprised to find that the 'teacher' was actually a student, if not a very mature looking one.

"Oi, you Afterlife Brigade bastards, come out, come out wherever you are~!" cried out the girl that I was following. Oh no…does this mean what I think it means…?

"Excuse me, but I was wondering…Am I dead?"

"Well, duh, I didn't call them the Afterlife Brigade for nothing. I can stab you through the heart if you want me to prove it to you…" she offered. Lustrous metal blades materialized out from the sleeves of her uniform which she then aimed at my heart, waiting for my reply.

"I think I'll pass…Anyway, shouldn't you be a bit more worried about them firing at you?" As soon as I warned her, a bullet whizzed past her ear taking some of her hair with it.

"Oh you're just asking for it, you immature little punk!" she yelled out. In the span of a single leap, the seemingly ordinary girl managed to land on a catwalk right above us. I was a bit unsure of how she was doing it but, from the sounds of things, it seems like she's deflecting sniper fire with her Hand Sonics. Well, I'm here now so I may as well help her. Not having the same level of inhuman physical strength as her, I resorted to running up the stairs to the catwalks above. Below me, the roaring crowd became eerily silent and deathly still. Were the NPCs always like this when a firefight breaks out?

"Sniper Two, I'm engaging the FNG" I heard someone say. Turning around, I barely had enough time to duck as another sniper began to fire at me. I ran over to a nearby balcony where I took cover behind a pillar long enough to arm myself with my Buster Shots. Before I could even fire back, I heard the thundering crack of another shot. The sniper must be using a high powered sniper rifle because a shot ripped through the pillar with enough speed to still kill me. What a horrible time to not be able to use Soul Synch…If I could just use Sakuya's Luna Dial, I could easily take out the enemy.

"Stabbity, stab-stab time~!" I heard the girl say to one of the snipers. A blood curdling scream was the only response I heard. Great, I've allied myself with psychopaths…

"This is Sniper One, request immediate support in the cafeteria catwalks! The Disciplinary Committee is staging a raid. I repeat; the Disciplinary Committee is staging a raid!" requested the other sniper. In calling for help, the sniper was distracted long enough for me to get up to the catwalks without getting shot at. Upon reaching the catwalks, I was nearly deafened by the thundering cracks of simultaneous sniper shots. The sniper scored a lucky hit in his blind firing as I saw the girl fall onto her knees. When I spotted the sniper, I opened fire. The shots hit him with enough force to knock him off the catwalks.

"You alright?" I arrived just in time to see her injury heal. Does she know about the Angel Player program?

"My wounds may heal, but they still sting like crazy. I'm more curious as to where you hid those pistols. Not only do they look absolutely badass, but they pack one hell of a punch!" complimented the girl. As I helped her up on her feet, she called out for reinforcements as well, "This is Sigma, requesting immediate backup in the cafeteria. Oh for God's sake, pick up!"

"Argh, I need my beauty sleep, Sigma! How many of them are we dealing with?" I barely heard her comrade respond.

"Standard reinforcements, Lambda: three Heavy units and five Skirmish units. Wake up Mu while you're at it" replied the girl known as 'Sigma'. "It's going to take a bit before those two slackers get their asses here. Since you're helping me out, welcome to the Disciplinary Committee. What codename do you want to use? If you can't pick one, just use the Greek equivalent of the first letter in your first name."

That means mine would be 'Phi' if I used my Real World identity…Enh, why not? "Call me Phi then. So what exactly are 'Heavy' and 'Skirmisher' units?" She merely pointed at a group of armed students who entered the cafeteria. I take it the ones with rpgs and grenade launchers are 'Heavy' units and the ones with the assault rifles are 'Skirmish' units. Unfortunately, Sigma's overly shiny Hand Sonics blew our position.

"Up there! All Heavy units, open fire!" commanded one of the Skirmish units. Various high explosives hit the catwalk we were standing on. Before the rockets and grenades could hit, I felt Sigma grab me and jump off the catwalk. Good thing too since the catwalk was blown to bits.

"Right now we have to deal with the Brigade. We'll get you your upgrades after we get rid of them" ordered Sigma. After giving me my orders, Sigma dropped me off right in front of the Brigade. Son of a bit-!

"You just lucked- Whoa, what the hell are you?" fearfully asked one of the Skirmish units. Screw my Buster Shots; I'll rip you to pieces! I turned my right hand into a claw made of pure, destructive magical energy. Two of the Skirmishers quickly fell after I took a swipe at them.

"Forget about the other one! All units, open fire on the FNG!" ordered who I assumed was the leader of the enemy units.

"However, by then you'll have been torn to pieces." I quickly made a run for the three remaining Skirmishers. Yet another one was taken down by my claws. The other two managed to jump aside. The slower of the two was quickly dispatched by Sigma with a graceful and fluid thrust of her Hand Sonic. The other one was struck by a crossbow bolt before he could pull the trigger. Was that one of Sigma's allies?

"Fire in the hole!" cried out one of the Heavies. Sigma looked like a deer caught in the headlights as a rocket was launched straight at her. I was about to jump in and save her when a man with a lance stepped in front of the rocket and used his weapon as a shield. The rocket detonated on what looked like a glowing beehive-like energy shield, leaving Sigma and her ally safe but definitely shaken. The three remaining Heavies were taken down by a trio of bolts before they could reload and fire again.

"My, my, such unskilled foes…So easily taken down and by a crossbow, no less!" bragged a young girl. She had her blonde hair in a bob cut and her eyes were an unusual shade of brown that looked like gold. Her Hand Sonic was an arm mounted crossbow which makes sense given her frail appearance.

"Uhm…S-sorry for taking so long, Sigma…If I had hurried up, you wouldn't have been put in harm's way…" meekly apologized the man. Compared to the other two, or even me, he was massive. His muscles matched his burly build which was barely contained by his school uniform. His auburn hair obscured my view of his eyes as they were like curtains. His Hand Sonic was a massive lance mounted right on his arm with gems embedded into it which I assume are his shielding units.

"What matters is we scored eight more kills. Given that we've been losing a lot lately, this is an excellent turn of events. Remember that if we win, they have to do whatever we say!" proclaimed Sigma. Sigma had silver coloured hair with part of her bangs in two braids and dark violet coloured eyes. Her physique was similar to that of Haruhi's; slender with a subtle hint of musculature. If I didn't know better, I would have thought she was Sakuya Izayoi herself. "Anyway, this is Codename Lambda and Mu. From now on, as long as we're not under attack, you may call Lambda Louise Valliere and Mu Michael Machiavelli. As you already know, I'm Codename Sigma or better known as Sakuya Izayoi. No, not the one from Touhou Project…Although I usually cosplay as her!"

"I'm Friedrich Sankt Germain, Codename Phi. I'm your newest recruit it would seem…"

"Sorry to break it to you buddy, but you're as dead as dead can be. On the bright side, you're now an official member of the Disciplinary Committee or as you'll hear more experienced enemies call us, Angel Beats" explained Sakuya. Crap, I thought so…

"Report to my room, Room 1616 tomorrow before 0900h. That's the sixteenth room on the sixteenth floor. There's only one room left in our dorm which is Room 1313. It doesn't take a genius to figure out why. If it's any consolation, our dorm has the best rooms!" she told me.

Why, oh why, do I always get such unlucky or evil numbers…?


	54. Chapter 53

Chapter 53: Angel Beats

I wasn't exactly able to rest too easily given that this highly aggressive and organized Afterlife Brigade could easily send a rocket flying into my room. It certainly doesn't help matters that they care little for the safety of the NPCs; it's either that or they're simply unaffected by all the chaos these two groups wreak. Since getting sleep wasn't easy, I simply opted to wake up an hour early. Now if I remember correctly, Sakuya's room is 1616. Come to think of it, Izayoi means 'Sixteenth Night'.

"Ah, you're a little early. If I had known you were going to come this early, I would have actually worn clothes" Sakuya said jokingly. It would seem that I entered her room right after she had taken a shower. Thankfully she still had her bath towel wrapped around her. Rather than making the situation more awkward, she merely took her clothes with her into the bathroom and changed there while carrying on with our conversation.

"You're quite confident in your appearance. Can't say I blame you…"

"Thanks for the compliment. You're not bad looking yourself; you know, in that sexy demonic sort of way. Anyway, we're getting off topic. You see that PC on my desk? Click on the feather icon that has the words 'Loli H Stash' under it." You hid the Angel Player program as a loli hentai stash? I clicked on the icon that she was referring to. If I had broken into her room to try and find Angel Player, it'd be a seriously difficult task since there are hundreds of these icons all labelled '_x_ H Stash'.

"The username is 'Flowering Night' and the password is 'Night16'" Sakuya said from the bathroom.

I did as she said and the familiar interface of Angel Player came up on screen. Oh, this is the original version…Well I suppose it would've been too easy if it was the same as my modified, pirated version. I noticed that each member of Angel Beats had their own settings. I clicked on the one that had Sakuya's name on it. She only had two settings on it: Hand Sonic and another one called Flash Step. Her Hand Sonic's blade design was like that of a knife's; double sided with one side curved, the other straight and the blade width being rather narrow. The Flash Step setting seems to be how she's able to move around with such ease and power. It's not really a form of speed boosting but more like matter translocation. It seems to take user input to create a limited range trajectory and then causes the user to follow said trajectory at whatever speed they want to go at. This is probably how she's able to evade so easily and place herself in the most ideal position to target her enemies' weak points.

I clicked on the next user, that being Louise. She too had Hand Sonic as a setting, but with a radically different design. Instead of being a simple blade, she managed to alter it to make a crossbow instead. The design was both elegant and efficient. The bow used was a recurve bow ensuring that it was able to store the most amount of energy for a quick draw. Rather than manually drawing the bowstring back for every shot, she built in a motor to pull the bowstring back whenever it returns to its undrawn position. She even went as far as to have a magazine for it that would load a bolt if there wasn't one loaded already. I really have to wonder what she uses as energy for creating more projectiles and power for the motor…Her other setting was Refraction. It utilized a field to refract light thus achieving a form of invisibility. With a silent weapon that produces no muzzle flash and near invisibility, I can only assume she's relegated to reconnaissance and assassinations.

The final user was Michael. Just like his allies, he made use of Hand Sonic. His is really just an extremely large and thick blade. In fact, its thickness makes it impossible to slash with, but very practical for ramming and lunging. Its large size is large enough to easily cover his entire body making it a useful physical shield. It truly shines as a defensive tool with its built in energy shields. They're designed to take the impact energy and dissipate it as ambient heat in front of the shield. In other words, it can take the explosive heat created by an explosion and send it right back towards the source. His other setting was Distortion which completely protects him from ballistic fire. In other words, he's an impenetrable wall; explosions and gunfire do nothing to him and his lance has a wide attack range that can easily strike anybody that's close.

"Now you know what we're capable of. I saw that you have some neat tricks and toys of your own. However, even with you, we're severely outnumbered…"

"What's you definition of 'severely'?"

"25:1. They have _a lot_ of members. It seems it's common nowadays to die with plenty of regrets."

"So how did you three die?

"We were all on the same flight to Japan. I was heading back home after a vacation, Louise was visiting family and Michael was moving. During our descent, the engines malfunctioned and, eventually, ceased functioning. Without the engines, we lost too much speed and couldn't generate anymore lift; in other words, we fell right out of the sky. We were done for and we knew it. Thankfully the explosion when we crashed killed us all instantly and painlessly. The only thing all three of us had in common was that when we came to in this world we knew it was Angel Beats right off the bat. What about you?"

"Bullet to the head. I ended up in a gang fight. I managed to kick everyone's ass with the exception of their boss. When she booked it, I chased after her. I was so pissed off that she killed my best friend, that I forgot she had a gun. In the end, scythe loses to pistol."

"You could actually use a scythe as a weapon? I'll give you props for that…I take it your friend isn't here?"

"No, thank God. That girl was as enlightened as Buddha. Just being around her put me at ease. Maybe that's why I had a crush on her for a little while…"

"Lucky her. The goal of Angel Beats is the same as that of the founder, Kanade Tachibana. We have to help free these souls trapped in this Limbo before those shadow things start attacking. Last night is just a minor example of a conflict we're engaged in. The deal we made with the Afterlife Brigade's leader is that whoever reaches a thousand kills first can make the loser do whatever they want."

"That's a tad crass don't you think?"

"They're all trigger happy and think we're agents of the God that they hate so much. This way, we can guarantee their cooperation."

"What's the score?"

"50-20 for us. We're in the lead by a great margin, but recently they've changed their tactics. Rather than small little groups attacking, they send at least half of all their available manpower after just one of us. Usually the targets are either me or Louise since we're a lot easier to take down with a mob than Michael. However, we've been at this for a couple months now…It makes me wonder if their leader is just trying to buy some time for some scheme…"

"So who's their leader?"

"A loli by the name of Joanne Winchester" she replied. At this point, I broke out in laughter. Either this girl is Jon's sister, which I highly doubt, or having his brains blown out caused him to confuse his gender. I wonder if this whole farce is part of Serenity's plan. If that's true, then there's a World Object here. Which one is it though? "I assume you know her?"

"More like him. That bastard tried to sell me out to the woman that killed me. He failed miserably and had his brains blown out by her. I hope he recovers his memories soon because I'm going to have a field day messing with him."

"How about you mess with him now? I'm currently working on a plan to capture him to find out what he's up to. Of course, you'll probably want to get your upgrades first. We'll discuss the plan during our meeting at lunch." She was surprised that I knew my way around the Angel Player program. I spent the time before heading to school recreating a low grade copy of Ange. School here wasn't anything particularly interesting, but I was a bit unnerved by the number of people who I suspected were members of the Afterlife Brigade in my classes. Suffice it to say, I felt relieved when I met up with the other members of Angel Beats in our clubroom.

"You should not be frightened by the Afterlife Brigade during school hours. The NPCs are surprisingly active and perceptive between the hours of 0900h to 1500h. If you wish to know what I mean, simply bring any firearm into your classes…" suggested Louise. I get the feeling this is your idea of a prank.

"…that's not very nice of you Louise…I was there to see what happens...unless you like being bludgeoned to death with chairs and desks, I wouldn't do it…" warned Michael. Yeah, I thought so…Then again, dying isn't the worst thing that can happen here.

"Alright, let's get down to business," Sakuya said to get our attention. Behind her, a SMART board descended from the ceiling via an extensive array of hydraulic lifts. When she turned it on, the Angel Beats logo popped up on screen. Tapping the screen, the logo was replaced by a standard desktop. She opened MS PowerPoint and opened a file titled '_God Capture the Queen_'. The thumbnail image for each slide was more than enough for me to understand that quite a bit of planning went into this. Once the presentation started, I saw that they have made, and likely memorized, countless permutations of each phase of their plan.

"Our plan has almost reached its conclusion. Other than the sudden turn in the tide of battle, everything has been going according to plan. The next phase involves raiding the Afterlife Brigade's armoury and weapons factory, the Guild. Thanks to some awesome Bond style espionage by Louise, we now know the location of the new entrance. As you likely remember, the Guild was heavily damaged during the time when the previous Afterlife Brigade was attacked by Kanade. Because of that, we had no idea how the Afterlife Brigade was accessing and using the Guild. Louise has determined the location of the new entrance to be here, under the school library" elaborated Sakuya.

"As the new guy, I have to ask the obligatory question: Why?"

"That one's an easy question. We're otakus, not gun nuts. The Afterlife Brigade has a dedicated crew that focuses purely on creating and maintaining their weapons. Since we can't make our own guns, we'll just have to settle for theirs. We'll need them for the next phase of our plan where we have to make sure that they have no access to ammunition. There's also the fact that we'll be using them ourselves to stage a raid which is after this phase."

"I have to admit, I'm impressed. Your group consists of three strangers and yet all of you are able to create and execute such detailed plans and backup plans. So when are we staging this raid?"

"The fun thing is that it's not just a raid! We'll be taking these along with us and setting them up at strategic locations," replied Sakuya. Michael then produced several wooden crates that were hidden behind a false wall. Taking the lids off, I saw that there were dozens of demolition grade explosives inside. "Whether we succeed or not in raiding their supplies, we have to make sure to completely demolish the Guild. Thanks to Michael befriending the school NPC nurse, we learned that it takes twelve hours for people to respawn in the school infirmary. They could also instantly revive after a few minutes, but I'm sure they won't like respawning over an ocean of magma~!" Ouch…

"I doubt we're starting the raid proper today since we'll have to transport the explosives. How do you intend to transport and plant these explosives without being seen? There's quite a bit of ground to cover between here and the library…"

"I, as a master illusionist, have added a new setting to my repertoire of skills. It is a variant of the standard Harmonics setting created by Miss Tachibana. Rather than creating a conscious copy, I learned how to make a programmable NPC. Using the extensive amount of knowledge I have of both of our groups' fighting styles, I created multiple copies of each of us to fight in our stead and thus distract that troublesome Brigade. There is one problem, however…Since you are a newcomer; I have no data on you. This means that you yourself will be fighting alongside our copies" explained Louise.

"Don't worry about it; Sakuya knows that I'm a reliable fighter. With the upgrades she provided me, I can easily stand my ground against a far larger group."

"Perfect. I want you to lead them towards the sports area since that's on the opposite side of the school where we'll be. Don't worry about the surveillance spotting you, Louise. Michael hacked their surveillance network and is playing looped video. Our demolition plan involves demolishing the structural supports, using the weight of the upper layers to crush the lower layers. This means that you'll have to hold out for two hours, Friedrich, while we set the explosives."

"So it's merely a matter of surviving then. I'm free to do whatever I want with them as long as I don't come to the part of the school where you'll all be, right?"

"That's right~! Phase 5 of Operation '_God Capture the Queen_' commences at 1450h! May fortune smile upon us!" concluded Sakuya. Everyone saluted before heading off to do whatever else they needed to do.

For once, I actually hope to live up to my title of Angel of Slaughter…


	55. Chapter 54

Chapter 54: Killing Field

The NPC teacher was surprisingly unsurprised when I left class ten minutes early. I noticed that there were a few Brigade members who were now tailing me. Upon facing a window, I saw in the reflection one of the members contacting the rest of her allies. Perfect, that's exactly what I want them to do. I led the group following me out to the sports field just as Sakuya requested. I'm sure for the NPCs the sight of dozens of armed students making their way to the sports field must have been pretty frightening. Thankfully the bell tolled, marking the end of the school day.

"You think just because you were bestowed with the powers of an angel that you can take all of us on?" asked the girl who was tailing me.

I laughed before responding, "You think I'm an emissary of God?" I activated Blaze Slide, flaring out my black flaming angel wings. Next up was Hell Hunt, now a dozen satellite support fire platforms rather than homing explosives. Finally I activated my Hand Sonic, a perfect replica of the very same ones I destroyed during my fight with Alice. Those closest to me fell backwards at the sight of what they thought was a demon or fallen angel. "Abandon all hope, ye who fight here. This meagre ground is now the border between Purgatory and the infernos of Hell. Burn in the hellfire, ye who oppose God, for the Angel of Slaughter has come to deliver judgement upon you!" My little introduction caused many of them to turn off the safeties on their guns and their squad leaders to call in their full force.

"All units, open fire!" commanded one of the squad leaders. The subsequent barrage was absolutely deafening. I quickly took to the skies where the more dangerous explosives were rendered useless. Wielding my Buster Shot in my left hand, I rained down a veritable bullet curtain on the attackers. While the more inexperienced fighters merely stood in fear and awe at my opening strike, the more experienced ones ran for their lives. Those who were caught weren't killed right away, but they definitely wouldn't be joining in any time soon. Once the more experienced fighters regained their composure, they filled the skies with gunfire. I swooped down to eliminate a serious threat in the form of three fighters equipped with chainguns and plenty of ammunition. Loading a cartridge into my Hand Sonic, I flew through their formation slashing with magic extending my blade's reach.

From my position up in the sky, I saw the rest of their forces coming towards me. I had to fly evasively as their snipers tried to take me down. I changed my Hell Hunts' target priority to the snipers lined along the top of the hill leading to the school. With my Hell Hunts unable to provide me with suppressing fire, I was forced to make quick dives down towards the enemy forces below me. I would fly down, slash with my blade's extended range, and then sweep my Buster Shot's stream of projectiles as I flew back up. It worked quite effectively as it easily took down groups of five with each dive. Unfortunately, they would revive minutes later, pick up their weapons, and tenaciously fight on. Now where are those copies that are supposed to be helping me…?

As I flew back up after making a dive attack, I saw that the snipers along the top of the hill were trying to run away from someone. When I flew closer, I saw that is it was Copy Sakuya tearing through their ranks. The snipers stood no chance as she swept them all aside with speed and grace. When the downed snipers revived minutes later, Copy Sakuya merely stabbed them through the heart before they could grab and reload their rifles. I doubt spawn camping has ever been so elegant or efficient.

Down below, I was surprised to see the fighters flying through the air like rag dolls. Most of the gunfire that was filling the air was all but gone. Instead, they were targeting Copy Michael. He was charging through their formations with such ferocity and speed that it was like watching a bullet train run people over. Those who couldn't get out of the way were flung into the air, tossed aside, or trampled underfoot. From my vantage point in the air, all I could see were broken bodies marking his path of destruction.

Those who moved out towards the edge of the field to avoid Michael were picked off by Copy Louise. The only sign that she had struck was when one of the fighters dropped dead with a crossbow bolt lodged in their head. Even though she could only take out one target at a time, Louise made use of her stealth to strike hard, fast and unnoticed.

Thanks to her efforts, the fighters were faced with four grim options:

1) Run up the hill right into Copy Sakuya's blades

2) Stay in Michael's unstoppable warpath

3) Run towards the wooded edge of the field towards the unseen assassin, Louise

4) Avoid Michael's warpath by letting me swoop down and run them through with my blade and gun them down. Though we were heavily outnumbered, we possessed superior technology.

This hellish chaos continued for the full two hours that Sakuya and the others needed. In the end, the copies and I were just human and were finally too exhausted to continue. We were finally overrun with their superior numbers when we couldn't suppress them any longer. The copies were the first ones to go down, disappearing in a flash of light. When the Afterlife Brigade realized that they had wasted their personnel and resources against illusionary copies, they were pissed right off. On all sides of me were fighters armed with the only weapons they were left with: knives and bayonets.

"Damn you underhanded bastards! You better be real or we'll burn your dorm down to the ground!" angrily yelled out one of the fighters. All around me, I heard the shouts of agreement all around.

"No need to throw a temper tantrum now children; I can guarantee you I'm the real deal. If you think I'll go out with a whimper, you're sadly mistaken!" The deafening roar of their battle cries filled the air as they charged at me.

In typical last stand style, I yelled out, "Long live the SOS Brigade!" as I rushed towards them with both Hand Sonics drawn. With what little stamina and strength I had left, I carved my way through the onrushing mob. With my magic reserves running completely dry and strength running low, I could feel the visceral resistance of the human body as my blades carved through them. It took me a while to notice that it wasn't just human bodies that I was cutting through, but their weapons as well. In the end, I managed to survive their onslaught. Exhausted and completely unarmed, the Afterlife Brigade retreated in humiliation at being unable to score a single kill whilst being slaughtered left and right. As I pulled back after a successful mission, I could feel the muddy ground beneath me. By the time I had reached the top of the hill, I saw that the sports field was literally a bloody quagmire that made it look like the battlefield of Paschendale. I did my best to walk back to my dorm. When the adrenaline wore off, I saw that my body was covered in slash and stab wounds. I managed to make it into the dorm before I finally collapsed.

"I hope you don't mind that I killed you. Your wounds were so bad that there was nothing any of us could do to fix it. In the end, Louise decided it was best if we just killed you and let you respawn. As you can see, respawning has the benefit of removing all your injuries" explained Sakuya when I woke up.

"Quite frankly, I'm surprised I didn't drop dead when I entered the dorm. I should be saying thanks for saving me the trouble of slowly dying from bleeding out and the excruciating pain…"

"Still…it feels wrong to kill your allies, even if it is to be merciful. On a brighter note, we succeeded in raiding and completely demolishing the Guild. The Afterlife Brigade is effectively unarmed and out of ammo. Even if they get their engineers back they face the problem of having limited resources to make their weapons and ammunition out off. The three of us did the easy part. With your victory, you have been baptized as an official member of Angel Beats. There is just one more thing bothering me…When you made your last stand, I heard from the Afterlife Brigade that you shouted 'Long Live the SOS Brigade!' Don't you mean 'Long Live Angel Beats!'?"

"Sorry to break it to you, but I'm a proud member of Haruhi Suzumiya's SOS Brigade."

"So you're an otaku too…Wouldn't you rather proudly yell our group's name than some made up one?" asked Sakuya. She tried to sound curious, but I could tell she was somewhat hurt.

"Aren't you in a world that's 'made up'? You and your group have crossed the Fourth Wall. Allow me to formally welcome you to the Fictional World. Just because it's fictional, doesn't mean it isn't real."

"Did you lie to us about how you died then? I told you the truth about us; I expect to receive the truth back…"

"You're right; I didn't die from being shot in the head. That doesn't mean I lied about the rest of it. One minute I was in a coma, the next I woke up in a new body here in the Fictional World. I've spent the last year studying to be a Slider in the Fictional World's hub, Celestia. After I saved my girlfriend from being imprisoned, I spent the next six or so months as a member of the SOS Brigade."

Her mood brightening, she chuckled before saying, "What, Ryoko 'Knife-tan' Asakura kill you instead of Kyon?"

"Nah, by the time we got there it would have been chronologically where novel nine starts. And anyway, right now Haruhi's world is inaccessible because it isn't there anymore. It doesn't take a genius to figure out who else besides Haruhi can cause a whole world to disappear…"

"Sasaki managed to get Haruhi's power? Man, it obviously didn't go so well…So is that why you're here? Sasaki kill you off when you tried to stop her?"

"Not a chance in hell. Yuki saved our asses by opening dimensional doorways out of Haruhi's world. It threw us all over the Fictional World but, hey, at least we still exist. So far I've managed to get reunited with Haruhi and Alan. We even added Konata to our Brigade roster!"

I could see that she was enthralled by everything I was telling her. I mean, how couldn't she? She herself is experiencing a small bit of what I've experienced so far. Who knows? If she and the others leave this place, they may just end up in Celestia. Given their exposure to Angel Player, it may just become their slider ability. "So how did you die?"

"To be honest, I have no idea at all. The last thing I remember was completing a mission for the DSO, stepping through the dimensional doorway I made, and next thing I knew, I was here. I'm not even sure if I'm dead or if the dimensional doorway I made accidently separated my souls from my body…"

"Souls? You have more than one?"

"Yeah, two halves that make one to be exact. Don't ask how though because I don't exactly understand it myself. So how'd the Afterlife Brigade react to their defeat?"

"They're _really_ pissed. Their leader is the only reason they haven't come here to burn and bomb our dorm to hell. As far as she, or he, is concerned, it was a complete tactical failure on their part. Nearly everyone in the Brigade thinks that we cheated to win so they're pissed off at their leader as well. I think they may have a civil war on their hands…"

"Crap…did I go too far with my part of Phase 5…?"

"We already planned for this variation in events. Although we may have to change the operation's name from '_God Capture the Queen_' to '_God Save the Queen_' if things get worse…"

"Well, well, it looks like the infamous Angel of Slaughter is awake now. I hope you enjoyed your beauty sleep because we have a problem…" congratulated Louise. I should assume the worst case scenario is now reality, shouldn't I?

"…it's really bad, Sakuya…The dorm where most of the Afterlife Brigade members live is a warzone…It's gotten to the point where Joan and her elite guard are asking for our help…" suddenly interjected Michael.

"At least we won't have to capture and interrogate her now…Alright then, were moving onto Phase 6, Variant Z."

"This is the twenty-sixth permutation of Phase 6? Damn, you really went all out in planning this, didn't you?" Sakuya was in no mood for joking; the grave look on her face said it all.

"Where's Joan now? It's been a while since I last spoke to her…" asked Sakuya.

"She is currently in the lobby with her elite guard and engineers. She has requested that we all move somewhere else. Her reasoning is that when they figure out that she and her allies are no longer in their dorm, they will come right to us" answered Louise. I followed them down to the lobby. It was completely full with Jon's elite guard and the freshly respawned engineers. The elite guard parted to reveal that Sakuya was indeed not kidding about Jon. In front of me was a gender bent Jon. He, or I suppose she now, was surprised to see me.

"Listen, Riku, you can kill me as many times as you want after we deal with my rampaging brigade. Right now, it would be more prudent if we worked together. I don't care if they get their hands on me as long as the rest of my allies are safe. I might have allied myself with Serenity, but I'm not one to leave my own allies to die. And anyway, don't you think I deserve to be tortured for eternity for betraying you and killing your girlfriend?" Everyone but me looked at her in confusion and disbelief. I'm sure for them Jon, or I guess Joan now, has been nothing but an exemplary leader.

"I was planning on messing with you to get back at you for betraying me, but that's childish. I'll let this little civil war of yours be your punishment in that you have to find a way to resolve it. For now, let's get out of here. La Resistance is going to eventually figure out you're here and come for your head like a mob of frustrated proletariat. Sakuya, do you have somewhere we can go?"

"Of course I do! You think the 'bad guys' wouldn't have their own secret base? I suggest we all get out of here now while the Brigade is busy raging and rampaging. My only price for using our secret hideout is that you have to officially disband your brigade and join us~!" offered Sakuya. Seriously, this isn't the time to be joking around. Everyone in Joan's group removed their armband that had the Afterlife Brigade's emblem on it and stood at attention facing Sakuya.

"We're awaiting your orders" said Joan. Sakuya was shocked that they took her joking seriously.

"Follow me then. Just try not to draw too much attention to yourselves…" answered Sakuya as she led us out into the night.

I knew that I would eventually meet Jon on the other side…I just never expected it to be like this…


	56. Chapter 55

Chapter 55: Subterranean Sanctuary

It took us a bit of time to sneak everyone past the rampaging Brigade members. Without their engineers providing them with weapons and ammo, they were forced to use makeshift weapons. Once everyone was past their roaming patrols, we headed towards the river. We all walked along the riverbank until we reached a bend in the river where the depth seemed to suddenly increase. An underwater lair? That's really old school…

"You guys have the Guild, we have the Sanctuary. Hope you can hold your breath because it'll be a long dive" warned Sakuya before she dove into the river. I made sure to watch our rear so I let everyone go ahead of me.

"You always love playing the hero, don't you? Well as long as you don't get killed, that's fine with me. We have something important to talk about so I expect to see you in a bit" Joan told me before she dove into the river after the rest of her allies. Do I really like playing the hero? I merely shrugged as I dove into the river after her. Sure enough, there was a tunnel leading down deeper into the earth. The further down I went, the darker it got until it finally went pitch black. Continuing downwards, I eventually found a source of light. When I broke through the surface of the water, I was surprised by what I found.

"Are you guys always trying to outdo us?" asked one of Joan's allies. He wasn't kidding. Compared to the military style tunnels and bunkers of the Guild, the Sanctuary was like taking a stroll through Heaven. The pool that I had just come out of was exactly that, a pool. Everything that we could see was made entirely of high quality marble and then trimmed with actual gold. Along the walls were dozens of bathrobes which everyone changed into thanks to the fact there were even change rooms here. Once Joan and I got out of our soaked clothing and changed into the bathrobes Sakuya handed to us, we made our way inside.

"To answer your question from before, not always. Believe me; I was just as surprised to find this place as all of you were just now. Don't ask me who made this place; whoever they were though definitely had way too much talent and time. We still have a long way to go before we get to the Sanctuary Proper so don't lag behind…" answered Sakuya. She led us to a spiralling staircase that looks like it goes down a few hundred feet. I wonder who made this place…They must have did it to alleviate their boredom or something. Unfortunately, it wasn't a tightly winding staircase but rather was hewn out of the marble deposit. In the middle of this staircase was a waterfall going all the way down to the bottom.

"You should see the Sanctuary Proper…I highly doubt that a normal human built this place because of it…" Louise told us. I've seen entire continents floating up in the air and water falling _up_ into said continents…I really wouldn't be surprised if this place was like some kind of subterranean paradise. Walking down further, we saw that there were windows built into the walls. The kicker? Bright light was coming from said windows. Letting my curiosity get the better of me, I ran ahead to see what was outside the windows. What do you know…I was right…

"_That_, ladies and gentlemen, is the Sanctuary Proper" Sakuya said as she pointed out the window. This 'tunnel' was actually a tower that was descending down onto the city down below. All around the city was pristine wilderness much like the Dyson Sphere that Estate was in. Looking down at the paradise below made me laugh at the irony. If one were to think of the World of Angel Beats as Purgatory, then logically the deeper we go, the closer we get to Hell. Obviously whoever built this place loves irony as much as Maguro, if not more so.

After a solid two hours of walking, we finally reached the base of this tower. Looking up, we saw that from our perspective on the ground we had just come down from the sky. Sakuya led us to a nearby stately mansion. We were surprised to find it was absolutely spotless inside and was already furnished.

"There are more than enough rooms for everyone. When you find a room that's to your liking, check the dresser and you should find a spare change of clothing. Unfortunately if you are female, we have no skirts available" Sakuya said to us.

"Good, I hate being Ms. Fanservice every time I'm running around and doing crazy acrobatic shit…" said one of Joan's allies before she hurriedly ran to a room to get changed. A few minutes later she reappeared wearing combat fatigues, a Kevlar vest and a helmet with goggles on it. "Hell yeah! Now _these_ are clothes you wear into a firefight, not some skimpy sailor uniform!"

"Well this is our last bastion of defence…It's only natural that we would have equipment lying around. Wait till you see the armoury…If you're wondering where all the stuff we stole from you went, just go there." That girl immediately started running around trying to find it. It wasn't even a minute later when we heard what I called the 'Fangirl Squeal'. Well they _did_ raid your armoury…

"Riku, when you get changed meet me in the foyer. I want to talk to you in private about something…" Joan said to me before heading off. What's that about I wonder? I quickly followed suit and returned to the foyer a few minutes later. I followed her out into the city as we walked away from the mansion.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" she asked me.

"Longer for me than for you. Getting stuck in Haruhi's world took off six or so months off my life, not that I'm complaining. So what did you want to talk about?"

"By now you should be aware that I used to work for Serenity. By 'used to', I mean she killed me off once I was no longer useful to her. One of the Babel Conglomerate's goals is to secure a series of special World Objects. Normally, World Objects are created when the essence of a world is concentrated in a single item or person. However, according to Serenity, there are a series of them that were crafted by the ancient Goddess of Celestia. You've already met her of course..."

"Haruhi?"

She shook her head.

"Yuki?"

She shook her again.

"Wait…Solipse?"

"Bingo! Well, not entirely…The Solipse you know is just the physical body of the Goddess. Who has her soul is what I never lived long enough to find out…"

"So you're telling me that Solipse crafted a set of World Objects, travelled to the future, and put them into Worlds that didn't exist during her time but she knew about? Why though?"

"Not even Serenity knows. What we do know is that these World Objects contain fragments of the Goddess' power. Her goal is to unite the Real and Fictional Worlds, force everlasting peace, and then rule over it all as its Goddess. Everyone in the Babel Conglomerate knows the goal, but hardly any of us know how she'll do this. Given her drive, I can safely say she knows what she's doing…"

"You do realize that leaving this place means losing your memories, right?"

"I know that already; Sakuya told me that when we first met. But then again, are you really dead? You seem like the type who's meant to do something vitally important, hence all the joking I do calling you a hero. For all I know, the soul of the Goddess may have brought you here to do something. And I think I know what…"

"Don't keep me waiting…"

"You, and perhaps others, have been tasked with finding the World Objects she created. In other words, you, or somebody else, are the successor to her for whatever she has planned. Which is why you'll want to know that I believe there's a World Object here."

"You're going to have to explain because I haven't seen anything remotely like it with the exception of Angel Player."

"Those Brigade members of mine that are rampaging topside? Yeah, they're not human. They're NPCs; something in this World took over the position of this World's God, and I believe it's a World Object."

"That actually seems possible. Yuri destroyed the computer that generates and controls the NPCs so there's no reason why there would be NPCs walking around now. Oh no…Who's stayed here the longest?"

"Me and I've been here for a year. Mind if I ask why you look terrified right now?"

I grabbed Joan by the shoulders and told her, "You _cannot_, under any circumstances, let any of these people back up there. I think that the rampaging NPCs may just be the preshow before the Shadows show up. If we don't find that World Object it won't be safe for anyone. Anybody who's attacked by them will become an NPC and be trapped here. Do you understand what I'm getting at?"

"The hero wants to keep the innocents back and take care of a mess that was indirectly perpetuated by us by himself? You know, if you wanted me to help you, you could just ask. My regret was losing your trust after I betrayed you. If I help you save the day, will that be enough to earn back some of your trust?"

"Let's see…If you betray me, I'll become an NPC and be trapped here forever until I eventually become a Shadow myself. Believe me when I say that helping me will earn back my trust completely. You'll probably try to throw me off and say something stupidly villainous like, 'Good, we can kill two birds with one stone…'."

"It'll be nice working together with you again. Don't worry, the last year I've spent fighting with Angel Beats has provided me with plenty of combat experience. I won't fearfully back down this time."

"The most likely place for it to be is the Central Core where the old 'God' of this world operated out of. Unfortunately, it's under the computer lab which is on the opposite side of the campus. We should keep the plan simple-"

"'Shoot and Run' sounds good to me; I never did like standing in one place anyway. I think we should still explain to them why they shouldn't go back to the surface. I get the feeling that this place is safe from these Shadows you keep talking about. As long as they stay put they'll be fine. If they want to go back to the surface, I won't try to stop them. My new belief now is that everyone should be free to do what they believe is right."

"I agree. As long as one of us gets the World Object, the Shadows are bound to disappear. The hard part will be surviving long enough. The Shadows can be killed but, since they abide by the same rules we do, they can come back to life; Sadly, they don't get tired."

"Let's go back and talk to everyone then. I bet they'll want to help us regardless of what we say." We went back to the mansion where everyone had been looking for us. Oh yeah, we never did tell anyone we were going outside for a little while. Gathering everyone together, we told them what Joan and I had been talking about. I almost can't believe that Jon has changed this much since his death over a year ago. He used to be even more apprehensive than Solipse and constantly afraid of failure. Now he's taking command and doing so with utmost confidence. Once we were done explaining our situation, everyone still seemed a bit sceptical.

"So you're saying that you two are dimensional sliders who can visit practically any World you want as long as there isn't some kind of barrier or reason not to? Damn that's awesome, especially for an anime otaku like me! If it means that the others that come to this place are safe, then count me in! After all, that was Angel Beats' goal all along anyway" Sakuya said in agreement. When I looked at Louise and Michael, they nodded in agreement.

"In that case, count us in too. I refuse to let our rivals show us up. This is the closest we'll ever get to an epic showdown with the forces of evil as we'll get to in our lives; it'd suck to miss it" agreed Joan's allies. With everyone agreeing, Sakuya led them to the armoury to arm themselves to the teeth with whatever Angel Beats has got stored in there. This left me alone with Joan who was calmly sipping her tea that she brewed during our meeting with everyone.

"I'm surprised you haven't asked me how having my gender reversed has affected me" she said to me before chuckling.

"Seemed like it was a bit rude to ask. In the last year and a half, I've met a female version of myself and gender bent versions of the SOS Brigade but I've never been gender bent myself."

"It felt natural at first because I didn't remember anything. So imagine my surprise when my memories started coming back and I learned I was actually male. But maybe that Fujioka girl I met a while back was onto something…I can say that regardless of whether I remain female or become male again, I'll do whatever the hell I feel is right to do" she responded.

I laughed before saying, "The funny thing is that you can get away with being a crossdresser whether you're male or female. I always thought that you were actually a girl because you seemed so effeminate once I got to know you…Hope that wasn't as insulting as I think it was…"

"Back then, I'd probably whine. Now? I really could care less. Anyway, unlike you, I have to arm myself. I suggest you get ready as well" she told me before walking away.

I grabbed her hand before she could walk out of my reach. I placed Unlimited Firearms in her hand and told her, "I've been holding onto this. You will not believe how useful it has been for me. If you want a real gun, just summon a pair of pistols I call 'Hellfire Buster'. It belongs to you anyway so you can have it back. To be honest, in hindsight, having this made me feel like a grave robber since I literally took this off your corpse…"

She simply slid the ring-like Object onto her finger and walked away. All of a sudden, she turned around, ran towards me, and kissed me on the cheek while saying "Thanks…I was always afraid that when we met again as Spirits in Celestia, you'd never forgive me."

"Just don't blow my knees off again and consider yourself forgiven."


	57. Chapter 56

Chapter 56: Queen Capture the God

Everyone had equipped themselves with as much as they could carry with them. Michael and the girl who was complaining about the uniform earlier were laden down with packs of rockets, bandoliers of ammo, and more grenades than I could care to count. Michael I can understand, but I wondered how that girl could carry so much and not be encumbered by it all.

When the girl saw me gawking at her, she merely said, "There's no kill like overkill. If I end up getting killed and turning into an NPC, I at least want to go out with a bang!" Standing beside her, Michael nodded in agreement. I did use a magical nuke to try and stop one person so I'm not in a position to counter that logic…When Sakuya finally joined us, I was surprised to see her cosplaying, well, Sakuya. She had dozens of throwing knives strapped to her body which made me wonder why she didn't opt to use a gun instead.

"I don't use guns because I could never handle the recoil. That and I'm actually skilled at throwing knives at moving targets. I used to do it as an act during anime conventions" said Sakuya as she started going over the plan Joan and I discussed with her. It was simple really: gun, run and hope to God you live. The faster we do this, the less likely we'll run into the worse case scenario where we're forced to hold our position with limited ammo available.

"I wouldn't worry about me. Unlike them, these Hellfire Busters have unlimited ammo. Let's just worry about getting one of us into the Central Core in one piece and alive" Joan said to me when she joined us. Just like her allies, she was wearing full combat gear. I had to wonder just how effective the Kevlar vests will be against the Shadows, but if it makes them believe they'll live longer then I suppose there's no need to worry. Sometimes belief in something is all a person needs.

Everybody was now standing on the landing at the top of the long spiral staircase, ready to fight. For a few moments, everyone felt a bit awkward realizing that we had to swim down here and now we had to swim up with all this gear. Thankfully, Sakuya put everyone at ease when she showed us a cargo elevator at the end of another hallway. It was a bit of a tight fit, but we managed to fit all twenty four of us in the elevator. As we ascended back to the surface, one of Joan's allies couldn't help but ask why we didn't just take the elevator before. Once the door opened, she merely pointed at the reason why. Seemingly unaware of our presence, a trio of humanoid shadow figures had their backs turned to us. Joan greeted the trio with twin bursts of fire from her Hellfire Busters. The shadows simply dissipated into a black mist before disappearing all together.

"You were right," she said to her heavily armed ally, "There really is no kill like overkill…" Stepping out of the cafeteria, we ran into even more of these humanoid Shadows. I guess this is what happens when NPCs emulate a real human soul…Having heard the staccato of gunfire from Joan's guns, they were now facing us as we exited. They didn't have faces, but I'm sure as hell that they're pissed off. Everyone brought their guns to bear as all the Shadows let out a deafening, unified roar. When they came charging at us, we responded with a hail of gunfire. As they all fell to our opening strike, we ran towards the bridge leading to the school. More of them showed up and were quickly taken out by well placed fire by Joan and her allies.

"I would like to point out how similar this is to a zombie apocalypse! It certainly helps that they can turn you into a Shadow if they kill you!" noted Louise as she shot a bolt at a Shadow ahead of us. When we reached the bridge, we thought we finally caught a break. When we were halfway across the bridge, a Shadow leapt up from beneath the bridge and pinned down Joan. I levelled the FN P90 that I took from the armoury and fired a burst at the Shadow's head. Its head turned to a black mist and its body went limp. Joan kicked its corpse off her and got back on her feet. That was a bit close.

We were expecting more Shadows to get in our way, but it was the exact opposite. We found ourselves being chased by them and then being headed off. What would have been a ten minute dash to the computer lab was now turning into exactly how Louise described our situation: a zombie apocalypse. We managed to outrun them for a bit, but we couldn't keep it up. A Shadow managed to get past us and attacked one of Joan's allies. Hearing him screaming at us to keep going, we were forced to leave him behind knowing he wouldn't be on our side next time we see him. As we lost more of our allies, Michael tore through the Shadows to create a path for us.

After a gruelling run that costs us half of our allies already, we arrived at the computer lab. The heavily armed girl from before threw a grenade into the lab before we could enter. The pained roars of a few dying Shadows inside were heard after the grenade detonated. Joan, Sakuya and I entered the room to search for the entrance while the others held our position. I kept stabbing my Hand Sonic around the general area where Sakuya remembered the entrance being. We finally found it when one of the tiles I shattered revealed a ladder going down. One by one, all of us headed down while I held the Shadows off. Once everyone was down, I jumped down the hole with dozens of Shadows still after me.

I hit the ground running since the Shadows started pouring down into the passageway. I spun about and unloaded the rest of my gun's ammo at the Shadows who had descended into the passageway. I took out the gun's magazine and threw it away as I reloaded it with a fresh magazine. As I faced forward again, I saw that everyone was running towards me with an equally large group of Shadows behind them.

"Shit, shit, shit, _SHIT!_ Other way, _OTHER WAY!_" yelled out Louise as we all rounded the corner into another passageway with Shadows chasing after us. The heavily armed girl simply cackled as she threw a grenade over her shoulder. The grenade did nothing to slow down the oncoming mob, but it certainly put her at ease knowing that she wouldn't be dying alone. We had enough of a lead to feel a bit relieved. Our hopes came crashing down when we were faced with an empty room and a vault door.

"We'll hold them off! Just get that door opened!" yelled out one of Joan's allies. He rallied his remaining comrades together, taking cover behind some fallen debris. When the Shadows entered the room, Joan's remaining allies held the Shadows back with a hail of gunfire and explosives.

"What'll we do? We won't be able to blow open a door like this!" Joan said, yelling over the gunfire and explosions behind us.

"I'll just do what Kanade did!" replied Sakuya. She slid her thin Hand Sonic in-between the door and the frame. "Hand Sonic, Version Two!" Her thin knife-like blade turned into a metal flower. Apparently the metal our Hand Sonics are made out of is tougher than this door as it ripped apart the locks. It was just another passageway ahead, but it was better than trying to hold off the encroaching Shadows. We called out to Joan's allies to follow. While two of them followed her orders, the rest of them remained.

"I'm sorry, Joan! If we stop firing, they'll overrun us and take you out! If you want to save us, just get that thing you sliders are looking for!" her comrade yelled out. Once again forced to leave more of our allies behind, we continued on deeper into whatever this place is. Reaching another vault door, we heard the screams of the ones we left behind as they were overrun. Sakuya bit back a curse as she opened this door the same way as the one before it. At the far end of the room was another door, this one a plain wooden one.

"Holy fuck, here they come!" fearfully yelled out one of Joan's surviving allies. Sure enough, the Shadows were charging headlong towards us. We backed up into the room firing our guns and throwing grenades. The heavily armed girl aimed her rpg up at the ceiling above the vault door and fired. The passageway collapsed onto the oncoming horde, stopping them. It didn't last long as seconds later we heard them digging through the debris and from the sounds of it, they're getting close and fast.

"That ain't gonna hold them back for long, Chief. Listen, we have no idea how long it's going to take you two to turn everything back to normal. The rest of us will hold out here. Anyway, I still got plenty of shit that'll go boom. If worse comes to worse, I'll use this here bad boy to blow down the ceiling in front of the Central Core. Now do your jobs and save the day 'cuz God knows if you fuck up, we're all fucked" she said as she got Michael to help her plant the C4 cluster she was holding onto the ceiling. While the others opened fire at the Shadows who clawed their way through, Joan kicked open the door to the Central Core.

"Ah, I've been expecting you. Surprised? You shouldn't be. This World Object is supposed to show you people's true feelings. Since you were the first one in, you're seeing me" greeted Jon. Behind us, the gunfire and explosions were silenced as the door shut. Joan was still looking at her male self in utter disbelief and shock. Jon sat back on a pile of wreckage that he turned into a chair. He took a broken cup off the table in front of him and took a sip out of it. Whatever it was he drank, I doubt it could've tasted good or even be edible if the smell is anything to go by. More of the wreckage came together to form two more crude seats as Jon gestured for us to sit down. Neither of us being able to trust what was surely an illusion, we both decided to continue standing.

"Where's the World Object?" Joan asked him. He pointed back at her.

"Like I said, you were the first one in. Of course, I'm not talking about your boisterous arrival just now. You were the first one here after that Yurippe girl turned down God's offer to succeed him. Despite being shot in the head, the bullet missed the part of your brain that held your memories. The reason you feel like you're not being controlled by your desire for power is because you got rid of that desire by making me."

"Just tell me how we can get rid of those psedohuman NPCs outside" she said to Jon.

"That's a simple task really. I'm surprised you haven't figured it out yet. Here are your options. You can continue believing that you've 'freed' yourself from your sinful desire for power. If you do that, I can make those NPCs return to normal and I'll wipe the memories of everyone who's in this World clean. You can live a peaceful life in that subterranean paradise you discovered forever with everyone."

"Like hell I will. That's no different than how things are now. If I have to pay for my mistakes, then so be it. I _refuse_ to drag everybody else down with me."

"Then you only have one choice: accept the fact that you're nothing more than a snivelling little weakling who envies everyone around him with power. You can add the overwhelming amount of grief at the knowledge your weakness has cost innocent people their lives over an empty promise. Choose this and I can promise you that you'll suffer for all eternity. Might want to add being trapped here to the list too."

Joan replied by laughing like a madwoman. "How about you listen to _my_ proposition, you snivelling little creep! Turn those NPCs and my friends back to normal or I'll make sure that _you_ suffer here with me for all eternity. Believe me when I say that eternity is a _long_ time…" Jon immediately flinched when Joan aimed her guns at him.

"You're not an illusion, are you? You're like me, someone with half a soul. You should know being shot hurts like hell. Given how much you've pissed yourself off, I doubt she's going to blow your head off. I'd cooperate if I were you…"

"I accept I'm a power hungry son of a bitch. Who isn't? Everyone has dreamt of being someone more powerful than they really are. I know the consequences of the actions I took. But I'm not that person anymore! If I could cast aside that part of me once, I'll sure as hell do it again! So quit dawdling and give back control of the World Object to me. I'll prove to you that I really have changed!"

"Then finish me off. The river you have to cross back in Celestia is going to be a long one so I suggest you hurry up. You've trapped those other people here with you so if you leave, they leave too" Jon said in resignation as he sighed. So all that trash talk was just a test?

Joan aimed her gun right at his head. Jon simply smiled and said, "It's time for you to start the trial to see whether you really have changed." When Joan pulled the trigger, everything went black.

* * *

Author's Notes: Sorry this took a bit longer than I had anticipated to put up. I had wanted to ensure that the information I was using for the setting was at least reasonably accurate since my research information is a bit dated. There were some things I added that weren't part of the original Angel Beats! setting like the oversized dorms the members of Angel Beats lived (in other words, basically owned), the underwater tunnel and the spawn times. My attempts at researching the first and last of those were fruitless so I hope those additions didn't retract from the overall arc. As for the subterranean paradise...well...you'll just have to wait and see :P


	58. Chapter 57

Chapter 57: River of Death

"Ah, finally awake are you?" someone said to me. When I opened my eyes, I saw a woman that looked oddly like Kelowna but much more mature. She was simply smiling down at me. Sitting up, I saw that we were in the middle of a vast unending ocean. Wait, this isn't an ocean…

"Man, do I really have this much regret?"

"The River of Death does not lie. I'm not too surprised though. I was ferrying myself back to help another soul across when I found you floating in the water. As soon as I put you into the boat, the river kept on expanding until it looked like this. I've ferried many people with plenty of regrets, but even as the Shinigami I've never seen anything like this…" she said to me. She continued rowing on even thought there was no way to tell which way the shore was. As we continued along, I began hearing Serenity's and Saki's faint voices out in the distance.

"Now that you're up, you have to face your regrets. Perhaps we'll learn why your river is such an immense size…" she said to me. As we rowed forwards, a bright light engulfed us both. When I could see again, I was floating in the sky as a ghost along with Kelowna's older sister. The city down below was a familiar sight. It was my hometown in the Real World after all. Given that it was raining, I guess this must be my memory of Saki's murder. The two of us floated down to where my past self was. My past self was running as fast as he could, carrying the scythe that he had forged. I could tell that it wasn't the rain falling from my face but tears. I remember feeling the dread that I would be too late to save her.

We then reached an open space where Serenity and her gang were. Lying on the ground, all beat up, was Alan. He was begging with what little strength he had left for Serenity to spare Saki. Saki simply stared back at Serenity without any hints of fear. Her stare must have pissed Serenity off since she pulled the trigger just as my past self arrived. I, along with my past self, could only watch in horror as Saki fell to the ground dead, her blood flowing out away from her forming a disturbing halo of blood. Alan stopped begging and was now weakly calling out to Saki. He managed to get back up to hold Saki in his arms as he kept calling out to her.

I could see in my past self's eyes the moment when I snapped and lost all sense of reality. The gang member closest to my past self was immediately cut down with a single fluid strike from his scythe. When my past self noticed he was still alive, he brought down the other end of his scythe onto his head. I turned away as I remembered that strike split open his skull and splattered everyone nearby with his brain. Everyone but Serenity and Alan were looking at him like he was crazy. Before anyone could say anything else, he swiftly cut down three other people. I could feel Kelowna's sister's hand on my shoulder as I had to watch as my past self viciously slaughtered the remaining gang members. The downpour did little to conceal their blood curdling screams. I'm sure it was at this point that bystanders were calling the police. Once all of the gang members were dead, my past self gave chase to the fleeing Serenity. The memory stopped before my past self was shot by Serenity.

"A terrible and tragic past…Surely your regret lies in not being able to arrive in time, correct?" asked Kelowna's sister. I couldn't voice a reply so I merely nodded.

When I could speak again, I said, "I already knew I wasn't going to make it in time. But I knew I had to try anyway. I couldn't let her be punished for saving someone. That's why I always feel like coming to everyone's rescue. Even if I can't save them, I still have to try in the hope that I can."

"Everyone has that desire to save another when they are in dire trouble. You have faced your regret bravely. See? Your ocean of regret has shrunk do-" said Kelowna's sister before she stopped. All around us, we could hear thousands of voices that sounded just like me crying out in anguish. All of a sudden thousands of screens began to appear to play out my memories. The sudden inflow of memories made my head feel like it was going to explode. I could hear Kelowna's sister asking me if I was alright as I began to scream out in pain. When the pain stopped, I managed to sit back up with the help of Kelowna's sister.

"So many memories…I've never met a human who has lived this long…If I counted correctly, you have lived for well over twelve thousand years. It's no wonder your river was so immense. Your regret has been repeated over and over hundreds of thousands of times. Stay strong, young man. It isn't over yet…" she warned me. She was right; the river may have shrunk considerably, but it was still there. Another bright flash of light warned us that we were about to relive another memory.

This time, it was my past self from the Real World when I was but a boy. The two of us arrived in time to hear my father finish angrily lecturing me about some unimportant thing. Once he stormed off, my past self wiped the tears from his eyes and went up to his room just as his father instructed. Rather than sitting off in a corner to cry, I saw that he had a resolute look in his eyes. Taking a notebook on his desk, he opened the window before leaping out onto the ground three stories below. I saw Kelowna's sister's eyes widen in surprise at my inhuman feat, but quickly shook it off as we gave chase. My past self had run all the way into a shoddy part of town. Waving to my past self was none other than a young Serenity. Even in the dark, I could tell she had been recently crying herself but hid it behind a big, bright genuine smile. She grabbed my past self's hand which caused him to blush before the two of them ran to a nearby café. We watched and listened as the two of them read to each other the stories they had wrote. I was surprised to find the two of them so happily criticizing and editing each others work.

"Hmm, a repressed memory…Surely it must have something to do with what happened to you later on. To think that Celestia's greatest enemy was once so innocent…" commented Kelowna's sister as she watched in amazement.

"Isn't everyone at the start? I'm starting to remember now…This was just a year after my little sister had died of cancer and my mom was murdered. Between the grief of losing my mom and sister and my dad's sudden hatred of me, I felt so alone and unloved. That was when I first met Serenity. There were some older kids bullying her so I came to help her. After meeting each other a few more times, we started doing this…" I explained then pointed at my past self and Serenity.

"I take back what I said earlier…Something closer to this time must have caused you to repress this memory; otherwise you should still remember meeting and being friends with Serenity" she said to me.

"That one's easy now that I remember. It was the last time we met like this, just before we graduated from elementary school. By then, I knew that Serenity was facing plenty of problems in her personal life. I felt like if we kept writing, she would have something to feel happy about. After reading my story, she ripped it to shreds and threw it at me. I could remember her screaming at me with such hate asking how I could torture her by writing such optimistic stories while I knew of her problems. She slapped me before running away in tears…At that moment, I felt alone again. It wouldn't be until I became friends with Saki during high school that I would ever be happy again…"

"I know that you reliving all these moments isn't my fault, but I still feel like I have to say sorry…It's almost over now…From the looks of the river, there is only one more memory left…" she said to me before we were engulfed by light again.

This time, my past self looked a few years older than I was. He was walking around the grounds of Estate looking for something or someone. After his search proved futile, he returned back to the entrance to the mansion. Waiting there for him was Serenity, holding a gift box.

"I'm glad you remembered to get me a present, Serenity. While you're here, have you seen my wife? I've been trying to find Hasaki all morning, but she isn't anywhere on the grounds…Do you know if she went to town?" he asked Serenity. The smile on her face immediately turned into that of anger.

"It's always 'Hasaki, my dear Hasaki' with you! Are you so blind of my feelings towards you?" she asked him angrily. My past self just looked at her in absolute confusion.

"I already told you that while I think of you as a treasured friend, I don't have the same feelings towards you. I've already told you this before. In fact, it was when you accepted that that you helped Hasaki and I escape into this fantasia so we could get married and live here peacefully for the rest of our days. I could tell you eventually got over me choosing Hasaki over you. Why are you suddenly bringing this up again?" he asked her.

"Do you remember your cute little cat, Sherlotta~?" she asked him in a voice so saccharine that it felt so utterly evil rather than cute. My past self's eyes widened in fear and surprise. At that moment, I remembered why and, I too, could only look at the box in absolute dread.

"It was you…_You_ were the one who killed Sherlotta and left her head at my bedroom door! Why? You knew that Sherlotta meant so much to me! _**WHY?**_" he asked her angrily.

"Practice of course~! Why else would I waste my time with a silly little cat?" she replied in that utterly evil saccharine voice of hers. It was then that I noticed that there was blood dripping from the box. "So here, my darling~. A present…just…for…you…~. Happy birthday! I hope we spend many happy years together~!"

My past self was trembling as Serenity helped him open her gift. The contents of the box were just as I thought. It was Hasaki's decapitated head and the ashes of her cremated body. My past self and I just dropped to our knees and began sobbing. Serenity knelt down and patted my past self's head. "See? Now we can all be together as one, happy family…forever…" she said to him as if to comfort him. My past self pushed her away in fear. She tilted her head ever so slightly to one side and gave my past self a perplexed look.

"Who are you?" my past self cried out as he backed away from the advancing Serenity.

"I'm Sere-"

"No, you're not! Serenity would never do something like this!"

"Of course she wou-"

"_NO, SHE WOULDN'T! GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME, YOU MONSTER!_"

"Oh well, I guess I'll have to settle for Sankt-in-a-box~!" Serenity pulled out a knife from behind her and tried to stab my past self to death. Acting on instinct, my past self wrenched her knife-wielding arm causing her to drop the knife. With a quick sweeping motion, my past self grabbed the knife before it could hit the ground. Still defending himself through instinct alone, he didn't seem to realize the magnitude of what his next action was.

"…huh…? Sankt…?" Serenity's tone of voice changed from one of insanity to the more familiar meek, quiet one that I was used to. Both of them looked down to see that Sankt had plunged Serenity's knife straight into her heart. The spot where the knife was plunged quickly began turning scarlet. It wasn't long after that did Serenity finally fall into Sankt's arms, dead. Not surprisingly, my past self was speechless; shocked that he committed such an atrocity, even if it was an accident. He laid her down on the ground and closed her eyes which still showed traces of her confusion.

Sitting up, Serenity once again opened her eyes that were once again filled with incomprehensible insanity. "Aww, you broke my host's body…I can always get a new one so I suppose it's alright~. You know, Serenity has been trying to fight me off ever since I took control. You should see her right now; she's been bawling her eyes out ever since she killed your pretty little wife! It's so much fun to watch~! I think I'll torment you three just a wee bit more and, for shits and giggles, I think I'll keep your friend Serenity's soul just so I can watch her despair even more~!" As soon as…whatever was possessing Serenity's body was finished saying its piece, Serenity's body once again fell lifeless to the ground as the scene before us faded.

Kelowna's sister had to help me off the boat as the vast ocean disappeared. I was still shaking but I remembered what my other regret was besides being unable to save Hasaki and her numerous reincarnations; it was being unable to do anything for Serenity. She has been trapped in the great shadow her regret, anger and jealousy made.

"Before you ask, my name is Kaine. I promise I won't tell anyone what I saw. Given that the river disappeared altogether, I take it you found a way to get rid of your regrets?" she asked me.

"Save the one other person I never could: Serenity. I don't know how, but I'll find a way…If I save her, I save Haruhi as well. I _will_ end this painful cycle of tragedy and suffering once and for all…"

"It won't be easy…But I have faith in you, young man. To be able to conquer a vast ocean of regret is no easy feat. Go forth then, create the future you three desire!" she told me.

I have to…Otherwise; we will simply circle around in this carousel of agony for all of eternity…

* * *

Author's Notes: This chapter was actually supposed to be at the very end of what is basically the SOS Brigade's fetch quest, but I felt it was better here; that and we get to see some backstory (feel free to add additional 'back' to backstory as this would have chronologically happened a _long_ time ago to Fried/Riku's previous incarnation. This also sets up a future arc, but I'm not finished that yet so you'll just have to wait and see :P

Coming up next are the Index, Familiar of Zero and Higurashi arcs...kinda...


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